Heatly’s next teacher spotlight can be found somewhere “over the rainbow,” as she played the infamous Dorothy in her community’s production of “The Wizard of Oz,” Elizabeth Grolley! Mrs. Grolley has been at Heatly for three years and currently teaches K-6 reading and math. She attended SUNY Plattsburgh for both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees, graduating from the school in 2004 and 2007, respectively. Mrs. Grolley then earned her teaching certification to teach students in grades 1-6, before beginning her education career.
For the first few years, Mrs. Grolley taught various grade levels at schools across the Capital Region, including a private preschool program. She also worked as a teaching assistant (TA) in the Ballston Spa Central School District, before transitioning to Heatly to take a classroom teacher position in 2020.
Since her arrival, Mrs. Grolley has taught both second and fourth grade at Heatly. When asked what she enjoys most about her job, the elementary school teacher said it’s “being able to work with so many grade levels and ages.”
Because Heatly is a small, community school with grades PreK-12 located in one building, Mrs. Grolley has the unique opportunity to watch her students progress and grow in their learning, all the way up to graduation.
In addition, Mrs. Grolley enjoys her flexible teaching schedule; it enables her to spend quality time with her family, especially her kids since she has the same holidays and school breaks off as them.
Over the years, Mrs. Grolley has heard a lot of valuable teaching advice, but the best advice she’s received is that “every day is a chance to start again, and each and every student should be given that fresh start when they walk in the door.”
When she’s not teaching at Heatly, Mrs. Grolley can be found at her local church where she serves as a worship leader. She also helps the church run their summer camp.
In her free time, Mrs. Grolley likes to spend time with her three children, Mia, Aiden and Greyson, as well as their pet Yourkiepoo named Ruby. She also likes to play the piano, garden, and spend time by the pool in the summer with her family.
A fun fact about Mrs. Grolley is that when she was in high school, she got the part of Dorothy in her hometown’s production of “The Wizard of Oz.” The same year, she had the opportunity to go to Madison Square Garden to audition for the National Tour Company for the “Wizard of Oz” on Broadway.