Jessica Baxter excited to train the next generation of Business Education teachers

Utah State University Brigham City is happy to announce the addition of Jessica Baxter to the campus faculty. Baxter will serve as a lecturer in the Business Education Department beginning in the Spring 2021 semester. She will teach Business Education Methods, Business Education Clinicals, a Business Education Secondary Curriculum Seminar, and Business Law.

“We are excited to welcome Jessica to Brigham City,” said USU Brigham City Associate Vice President Dan Black. “Her enthusiasm and excitement for life will definitely impact students by inspiring them to be awesome.”

Baxter returns to her alma mater, having earned her bachelor’s degree in Business Education from the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business and her master’s degree in Human Resources. For the past 10 years, she taught junior high students in the Ogden and Weber school districts.

“I am extremely excited to head back to my alma mater and teach Business Education courses,” Baxter said. “I have enjoyed my years as a public school teacher but am eager to now focus on teaching the next generation of teachers. I am excited to share my real-world teaching experiences with my USU students. I hope to instill in them a love for teaching that will lead to an amazing group of teachers who set out to enrich young minds everywhere they go.”

Baxter gravitated toward business classes at a very young age. Going through her junior high and high school courses, she always loved taking business classes, classes she feels have served her throughout her career in the field.

“To this day I still use many of the skills I learned,” she said. “Many of our secondary education students feel the same way. In this age of digital technology, our young students rely daily on the skills they are learning in their business courses. I love being able to teach my students things that I know they will use for the rest of their lives.”

For the past 10 years, Baxter has worked in junior high schools teaching business classes. She taught at Mt. Ogden Junior High School for eight years, where she was the Business Department Head and was a part of the school leadership team. Over the past two years, she worked at Wahlquist Junior High School, where she taught business classes and was the Future Business Leaders of America club leader.

Working in these positions, Baxter saw the need for more Business Education teachers in these schools, having seen many openings in school districts that did not have any applicants. She has seen the value this education gives young students and is excited to join USU and train future educators.

“As a public secondary education teacher for the past 10 years, I have seen how the shortage of Business Education teachers has hurt our state,” she said. “I have sat on many a hiring board with no applications for a business education position. I am so excited to get to help grow our Business Education department at USU. I know that the teachers we produce are sorely needed in the junior highs and high schools around our state. I am excited to be able to send my USU students off to a career field with such a good job outlook and so many job opportunities.”

The Business Education program at USU combines the fundamentals of business with skill in teaching those principles to junior high and high school students. Students study topics such as accounting, management, business, web design, image and video editing. Students also have the opportunity for hands-on experience through student teaching. This program is ideal for those with a desire to educate young students and inspire them to build business careers of their own.

“Our department helps students explore and experience teaching through clinical experiences and student teaching,” Baxter said. “Graduates within this degree will attain business content knowledge as well as develop a pedagogical skill set to help them teach at a secondary education level. I am excited to help my students navigate this unprecedented time in education. Good teachers are needed now more than ever before, and I know that our USU students can fill that role.”

For more information on the Business Education program at USU Brigham City, visit statewide.usu.edu/brighamcity/degrees.