From STEM mentorships to a student mission trip in South Africa, Shandra Pankoski creates meaningful opportunities for Valor Christian Students
By Kristi Seller
FOR SHANDRA PANKOSKI, education is about more than mastering a single subject. It is about helping students discover their strengths, go beyond what they thought possible, and recognize the purpose behind their individual gifts.
Pankoski has served Valor Christian High School in several capacities, beginning as the math department chair before becoming STEM curriculum lead. Today, she serves as director of academic development and STEM, a role that allows her to support both students and fellow educators.
“What I enjoy most is having the opportunity to develop experiences where students and teachers feel challenged, inspired, and empowered to grow,” she says. “Seeing that growth, academically, personally, and spiritually, is what brings me the greatest fulfillment.”
That philosophy often takes learning far beyond the traditional classroom. Through Valor’s STEM program, more than 30 industry professionals partnered with students last year, mentoring yearlong capstone projects. They also provided internships and job-shadow possibilities and introduced students to potential career paths.
Those experiences ranged from participating in a cadaver lab and learning suturing techniques from physicians to touring nuclear reactors and engineering facilities. Many opportunities are driven by the students themselves.
“When students are given meaningful opportunities, inspired by caring mentors, and challenged to step beyond what they think they’re capable of, they almost always exceed their own expectations,” Pankoski says.
That same emphasis on growth recently took Pankoski and a group of Valor students thousands of miles from home.
Through Valor’s Discovery program, which incorporates service, cultural immersion, leadership development, and other experiences, Pankoski traveled with students to South Africa. There, they served underprivileged communities in Johannesburg and Cape Town, leading children’s camps, providing health education, joining healthcare workers on home visits, and serving alongside the Cooking Mamas, a ministry providing meals to people in need.
Pankoski was especially moved by watching students embrace unfamiliar circumstances. “They consistently chose compassion over comfort,” she says.
One of the trip’s most memorable moments happened on a soccer field. After several days of ministry, the group faced local high school students in what had been billed as a “friendly” match. “It looked like we had accidentally signed up to play the South African national team,” Pankoski jokes.
The Valor students jumped in anyway, and the competition quickly became secondary to the connection forming between the two groups. “By the end of the match, it didn’t feel like two teams from different countries; it felt like a group of friends who happened to meet over a soccer ball,” she says.
Away from school, Pankoski finds her own sense of adventure close to home. She and her husband have three children, and the family enjoys paddleboarding, hiking, camping, skiing, snowboarding, and snowshoeing together.
Motherhood, she says, has also influenced the way she approaches students and families. “It has given me a deeper understanding of the hopes, joys, and challenges that both students and parents experience,” Pankoski says. “My husband and children inspire me every day, and I know I am a better teacher and leader because of the ways they have challenged, supported, and encouraged me.”
Whether helping a student envision a future career, serving a community halfway around the world, or simply encouraging someone to take the next challenging step, Pankoski’s approach remains rooted in helping young people see their own possibilities—in the world around them and within themselves.
