Tyrone Teacher Makes an Impact in Her First Year

Levi Walk

Ms. Runyan

As the school year comes to a close, new business and accounting teacher Shelby Runyan is looking back on a successful first year at Tyrone. Already a popular member of the faculty, Runyan earned the “Teacher of the Month” Renaissance Award for December and a nomination for Teacher of the Year.

“I’ve had a lot of great experiences this year. I was honored to be Teacher of the Month for December,” said Runyan.

A Pennsylvania native, Runyan grew up in Bradford where she attended high school.  Runyan had many inspirational teachers who she looked up to. She credits her high school teachers with helping her chose her career path.

I had really amazing teachers when I was in high school, and I wanted to be the same kind of role model for teenagers,” said Runyan.

After high school, Runyan furthered her education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) where received her Bachelor’s of Science in Education with a minor in Educational Psychology.

Runyan moved to South Carolina after graduating college because she grew up hating the snow.  However, she moved back to Pennsylvania after just a year because she missed her family so much.  While looking for jobs close to home, Runyan came upon a job opening at Tyrone, which she secured.

“Tyrone really reminds me of home. It’s a small school, which is what I’m used to. The students are great, and my colleagues have been very welcoming,” said Runyan, who has no plans of leaving Tyrone any time soon.

Runyan enjoys interacting with students on a daily basis, which is the reason she became a teacher in the first place.  Her favorite class is Personal Finance because she is able to teach her students valuable real-world knowledge.

Many students would agree that Runyan is living up to her goals of being a positive and inspiring role model.

“She is a genuinely easy person to talk to. Over this past school year, even though I wasn’t her students, we bonded over our shared love of corgis. I really enjoyed spending the evening with her at the regional FBLA competition. I won’t forget hanging out with her in Ms. Kline’s room after school almost every day while the traffic cleared up,” said junior Meghan McMullen.

“There’s so much to be taught when it comes to the “real world” and personal finance is a great class to teach some of those things. Some days it might not be the most exciting, but it’ll prepare the kids for what’s to come,” said Runyan.