Preschool the place to be for Wauneta-Palisade’s Crosgrove

Walking into a school can be intimidating for many young students.
Making a positive first impression and starting their educational foundation are important to new Wauneta-Palisade preschool teacher Kayla Crosgrove.
Crosgrove is a 2015 graduate of Ponca Public Schools. She graduated in 2020 from Wayne State College with Early Childhood Education and K-6 Special Education Degrees.
“I was doing a clinical in college and was placed in a preschool classroom and knew from that point on that preschool was the place to be,” she said, adding she loves knowing she gets to jump start students for the rest of their schooling. .
Seeing kids suddenly understand concepts is a highlight.
“The kids are so much fun to be around, light bulbs are always going off in their little minds,” Crosgrove added.
After growing up on a farm in Jackson, Nebraska, Crosgrove said Wauneta-Palisade  has that small farm town feeling she had growing up and loved.
“So I knew it was going to be a great fit,” she said.
Crosgrove’s fiancee, Jacob Pritchard, started teaching at WP last year.
As she met the administration and a few of the teachers, she was impressed by how they clearly showed how welcoming and friendly they all are.
“That is the type of staff and school I knew I wanted to work with,” Crosgrove said.
Crosgrove replaces Kristi Vapenkik who taught elementary, special ed and preschool for 23 years and retired last spring.