“What is the best way for me to make a difference in the lives of more people?” 温迪·麦卡蒂（Wendy McCarty）博士几十年前作为一名年轻教师扪心自问。 
 
“As a teacher, you get to impact your students in small batches, but if you can make a difference with future teachers, then you are making a difference within many classrooms,” Dr. McCarty, director of 太阳城娱乐官网’s Transitional Certification Program, said. 
 
2002年，全在线课程启动，为学生提供另一种获得教师证书的途径，同时允许学生在太阳城娱乐官网的公立学校全职教学。 
 
That same year, Dr. McCarty was hired by 太阳城娱乐官网 as a lecturer for the 教育学院. 几年后，当时的TCP教员露西尔·弗里曼（Lucille Freeman）鼓励她为TCP教授在线课程。 
 
“She wanted to make sure this program would survive,” said McCarty about the late Freeman. “She wanted to put it into the hands of someone who would take care of it, help it grow, and not let it die. And she said that's why she came to me.” 
 
In 2011, McCarty was encouraged to become TCP’s director. 她不仅维持了这个项目，而且帮助它蓬勃发展。 
 
“The program started very small,” Dr. McCarty said.  
 
2002年，当该项目首次启动时，该项目的学生人数不到10人。 今天，多亏了像麦卡蒂博士这样敬业的教师，这个项目目前有近300名学生。 

 

“Every year, the program began to grow, and it became very evident that we needed to have another full-time faculty person dedicated to this program. And that's when Rebecca was hired,” McCarty explained. 
 
丽贝卡·纳尔逊博士于2018年受聘协助麦卡蒂开展这个不断发展的项目。 She will become the program's director in Spring 2024, following Dr. McCarty’s retirement in December. 
 
“I feel like I'm able to hand something off to Rebecca that I know she is willing and capable of moving forward. I feel confident that the program quality will continue,” McCarty said. 
 
“I was genuinely sad to hear Dr. McCarty is retiring,” said 2018 alumna Gretchen Monroe. “I loved her determination to make sure people could do what I got to do.” 
 
Monroe was able to make a career change in her 40’s, transitioning from a career as a journalist to an English teacher thanks to 太阳城娱乐官网’s TCP, online courses, and Dr. McCarty. 
 
Dr. McCarty feels “a sense of accomplishment” with her goal of impacting as many classrooms as possible and now she is looking forward to spending more time volunteering and traveling with her husband.  
 
“For me to be able to finish my career in education here, I don't think I could have asked for anything better,” McCarty said. “The people I've met, the opportunities that that I've had, especially with this program, I couldn't have asked for anything better.”