February 19, 2026, members of Educators Rising competed in the Arkansas Educators Rising State Conference. This is an all-day event where students from across the state of Arkansas come together to celebrate education while competing in various events connected to state standards . 250 students were competing, 95 of which were from Bryant. 

People competed in various categories such as sock puppets, reading aloud, class plans and more. Sponsor Jessica Wilson recognizes the importance of the conference for those in the club.

“This event is a wonderful opportunity for students to take their learning from class and shadowing and apply it to a large-scale project,” Wilson said. “I love getting to celebrate my students’ hard work and wins at State. ”

When asked about the event, and why some students are fit for certain categories like, sophomore Lillie Young discussed the book she made and presented to judges.

“I’m competing in the Pre-K Literature contest and I think I’m fit for this because I can make good stories,” Young answered. 

After the event, when people had finished competing in their categories, student’s nerves slowly settled after having to be face to face with judges, trying their best to show why they should win. 

“Dealing with stress is hard,” sophomore Raimey Beinvenu said. “When I was getting really worried at times I would take a break and come back to it when I felt a little less worried.” 

At the end of the day the students get back on the bus and head back to school. 

“Working on something for months and then taking it to a competition, and potentially earning top scores, is a huge win for students in terms of their confidence in their knowledge and themselves,” Wilson said.