Welcome to the 2025 South Dakota Week of Work!
This week, April 7-11, middle and high school students across the state will explore future career opportunities through job shadowing, industry tours, and hands-on experiences connecting classrooms to careers. In the Sioux Falls School District, these opportunities aren’t limited to just one week a year, they happen year-round and across all grade levels!
Throughout this week, we are celebrating a few of the many stories that show how SFSD helps students discover their passions and prepare for the future.
Our first story features a former SFSD student turned teacher. Meet Hannah Jensen!
For as long as she can remember, Hannah Jensen has dreamed of becoming a teacher. Her early days were filled with colored pens, whiteboard accessories, and afternoons spent watching her mom (an educator herself) bring learning to life.
As a senior at Lincoln High School, Hannah enrolled in the Sioux Falls School District’s Teacher Pathway program at Roosevelt High School. Launched in 2017, the Teacher Pathway Program was the District’s “grow your own” initiative that gives aspiring educators hands-on experience and a deeper understanding of the teaching profession. It was in that class that Hannah discovered her true calling wasn’t in elementary education as she originally thought, but in teaching high school English.
Fast forward several years later, Hannah is back in the Sioux Falls School District classroom, but this time not as a student, but as a teacher. Hannah teaches English at Jefferson High School. While she once planned to move away after college, she is now grateful her path led her right back home.
“Working in the community I grew up in is a privilege,” she says. “Not only do I get to pour into the future of Sioux Falls, but I also get to be part of the same activities that made my high school experiences so memorable.”
Her connection with students runs deep, sometimes even through shared stories of past teachers. “As silly as it sounds, being able to connect with students over our shared teachers has been huge. I’m lucky to call many of my amazing teachers my coworkers.”
Hannah’s journey, from student to teacher, from curious learner to classroom leader, is proof that when students are given real-world opportunities and caring mentors, you really can go anywhere from here!
Stay tuned all week as we highlight more incredible Week of Work stories!