Quail Run teacher serves as the voice for students

As an interrelated teacher at Quail Run Elementary School, Allison Tarrer makes it her duty to be the voice for her students.

Tarrer grew up in LaFayette, Georgia, graduating from LaFayette High School. She then attended the University of Georgia (UGA), where she earned her bachelor’s degree in special education, as well as her master’s degree, from Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) in Americus. During that time, she also completed requirements for early childhood education. She then earned her six-year degree in leadership from Columbus State University.

Tarrer said she met her husband, Scott, who was attending GSW, the year she started UGA in 1991. They married in 1995 and currently live in Ideal, Georgia, which is in Macon County. She noted her husband owns a poultry farm.

Tarrer taught in Macon County for six years and then when her son was ready for pre-k, she attended the teacher recruitment fair in Houston County and ended up getting a teaching job here at Quail Run Elementary. She said Dr. Doug Rizer, the current principal at Houston County High School, hired her. Tarrer has been teaching at Quail Run Elementary for 14 years now and has taught special education kindergarten, second grade and first grade. Currently, she’s an interrelated teacher, where she serves students with learning disabilities.

“It’s my favorite job so far,” Tarrer said, noting she works with kindergarten, first and fifth graders, while her partner works with second, third and fourth graders.

This is her 22nd year teaching overall. She says to be chosen as Teacher of the Year is a huge honor.

“Every teacher in this building works as hard as they can work,” Tarrer said. “I hope I never leave this school till I retire. Both of my kids went through here. You can’t find teachers who work harder than elementary school teachers. This really is like a family. I’ve probably been here one of the longest of anybody in the building, but everybody who comes in loves it. Nobody just wants to leave. Teachers work so hard and they care about their kids and each other. It really is like a family.”

She also commended the school’s administration.

“We have the best administration,” she said. “You go to them with any questions, concerns or issues, they’re going to find a way to solve it for you. If you need something, they are there for you. They take care of the school, they take care of the kids and they take care of the teachers. They make sure safety is first with the kids. They’re big on procedures and learning the correct thing to do at the first of the school year and then the rest of the school year just goes smoothly. They’re wonderful.”

Why teaching?

“When I was in high school, my parents’ best friend had a son with Down syndrome and he was like my brother. They also had another set of friends who had a son with cerebral palsy. When I got into high school, it was never a doubt what I was going to teach. Special education was going to be my thing because I didn’t see them as different. They were like my brothers and still to this day they are.”

What brought you into the field?

“Kids with disabilities need somebody to speak for them. They can’t always speak for themselves. They need people to take care of them, to teach them how to live in the world. Sometimes they need a snack, sometimes they need a pencil and sometimes they need notebook paper. They are very needy and sometimes they just need you to be their voice. I have 11 fifth graders and they want to be in here all the time. I try to give them what they need to make them successful in their regular class. I write their paperwork for them. I’m technically their case manager, but I also just provide things that they need and things that their teachers need to help them be successful, which is mostly a big part of my job.”

Any inspiration from past teachers?

“I don’t remember ever really having a bad teacher. I remember in my elementary school years, my fourth grade class was split — half was fourth grade and half was fifth grade. I had that teacher for fourth grade and fifth grade. I remember she was fantastic and wore pretty earrings (she said smiling). I think what I’ve learned most is from the teachers in this building. When you have your own kids in somebody’s class, I probably learned more from them than I remember from me being little.”

Best part of teaching?

“The best part of teaching is when they come up to you and give you a hug and say ‘I love you,’ when we study and study for a test and then they make a good grade on it or when it’s a math concept and they finally grasp how to do it, or to see their reading level improve. When you can see that light bulb come on or see some confidence or see them be successful, that’s the best part.”

What is it about teaching that you like the most?

“There is something different every day. I like this job because I’m on the move all day long. I like that it’s never dull; it’s never boring. There is always something new every day. You can make a difference in one of their lives every day. You get the summers off. Not many people get to start over fresh every year. Well, teachers get to do that.”

Most challenging part of teaching?

“Trying to get all of the paperwork done. There is not enough hours in the day, and then you feel challenged when you can’t meet all of their needs such as if they have family issues or things that you can’t solve. That’s hard because you want to do it all for them and sometimes you just can’t. Sometimes being in the grind every day all day, it gets to be a challenge, but it’s not something that you can’t overcome.”

Anything that makes your job difficult?

“When you try to do so much and you can’t get it all done, that’s difficult. Or when you have a situation that a kid lives in where their parent can’t provide for them or can’t give them the resources that they need and you feel helpless, that’s very difficult. That goes on every day. Things that you can’t control make it difficult.”

If not teaching, what?

“I don’t see me doing anything else.”

Advice to students:

“Don’t sweat the small stuff, but you still have to give it 110 percent every day. Even when you think you can’t, you can find a way to get it done. You have to work hard.”

Advice to parents:

“Be there for your kids. Having a senior, I know how fast it goes. When they’re little, they ask all of the questions; when they’re teenagers, you want them to talk to you. Don’t rush it. Try to do something every day to encourage them or motivate them, because it flies by. Make the most of every day.”

Home life:

“We live on a poultry farm. I have a son, Andrew, 17, who’s a senior at Perry High School. He plays baseball and is going to Mercer University next year. I have a daughter, Abigail, 15, who’s a freshman at Perry High. She does competitive cheer. So, I’m never home; I’m always in the car. I’m always doing something for Perry baseball or cheer. We love Perry High School. We are huge Perry Panther fans. We love to travel. Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, is our favorite place. My husband is an avid golfer. I’m also a big Georgia Bulldogs fan and a big Mercer Bears fan. I was raised in a sports family. When I was in high school, my parents were always on the sideline at football games and they were at everything that I went to. My dad was the publisher of a newspaper, so I grew up in the newspaper world. Both of my parents work at Mercer University. My dad is actually the voice of the Bears for basketball and football and now baseball. They’ve been there for over 20 years. I’m very close to my parents, and I have one sister who lives in north Georgia. Both of my parents and in-laws are very active in our kids’ lives. That’s a big positive that my kids have. We have tried to do everything our kids have ever wanted to do. I have been to thousands of baseball games all over the southeast, and I have been to hundreds of cheerleading competitions all over the place.”

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