UL teacher named Civil Air Patrol West Virginia Wing’s Air Aerospace Educator of the year
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MORRISTOWN - Union Local Middle School eighth grade science teacher Tracey Wodarcyk has been named Civil Air Patrol West Virginia Wing's Air Aerospace Educator of the year.
Wodarcyk has spent the past 35 years teaching at Union Local and has taught at Civil War Patrol for the past four years as the Lead Aerospace Educator and Deputy Commander of Cadets.
Wodarcyk is a Ohio University graduate, where she earned her Master of Education degree. She resides in St. Clairsville and has dedicated her career to inspiring students to explore the world of science and discover the excitement of hands-on learning.
The Civil Air Patrol is the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force and operates as a congressionally chartered, nonprofit organization made up of adult volunteers and youth cadets ages 12-20.
"It was very nice to be recognized at the state level for doing the STEM and hands-on activities with the cadets," Wodarcyk said. "What I want to do is to give them an opportunity to do those kinds of hands-on activities that interest them and feed into their excitement of aviation experiences."
The Civil Air Patrol’s WV-049 Composite Squadron is based at the Ohio County Airport in Wheeling and is part of the Mid-Atlantic Region.
It is commanded by Captain Cathleen Harr and provides cadets with opportunities to develop leadership skills, participate in aerospace education, and serve their communities.
Following participating in the Civil Air Patrol, cadets can go on to pursue a wide variety of careers including aviation, military service and space exploration.
Wodarcyk said many former cadets credit the program’s emphasis on leadership, discipline, teamwork, and its core values with helping shape their personal and professional success.
She added she began teaching for CAP after her son Samuel Wodarcyk was interested in joining the program.
"My son enjoys aerospace and aviation, so he joined when he turned 12. Because that’s the youngest you can join. And then as being part of the organization and then knowing that I teach science, it didn’t take long until they recruited me to help them teach and teach lessons on aerospace," Wodarcyk said.
She added CAP gives its participants opportunities to grow the skills they already have.
"I really do enjoy that for my son, they actually have leadership classes and character development classes for honing in on those skills to see where your strengths are and how to work with your strengths," Wodarcyk said.
In addition to being awarded educator of the year, Wodarcyk was named 2026 Internal Space Aerospace Officer of the year this past spring.
She said she wants to encourage fellow educators to explore the opportunities available through CAP.
The organization provides access to free STEM curricula, hands-on classroom materials and exciting aviation experiences through its Top Flight program, giving teachers valuable resources to bring aerospace education to the classroom.
Wodarcyk said when she tells teachers about the program, they always ask her what the catch is. But there’s no catch, she says; teachers wanting to use any of the program's STEM resources just have to fill out a paper before and after using the various items.
"You get to keep the robots, telescopes, and all of it. It's really, really neat," Wodarcyk said.
She added if students would like to become involved with CAP, they or their parents can email cathleen.harr@wvwg.cap.wv.