For more than 50 years, Marcia Collins has been part of the lives of Polk County students and families.
She has driven a school bus, worked in classrooms, coached athletics and, for the past 14 years, helped lead Polk Central Elementary’s after-school program.
That longevity is remarkable. But for the families who know Collins, the more important measure of her career is found in the relationships she has built along the way.
“I love working with these kiddos and if I make at least a small difference in one life it was a good year,” Collins said.
Collins attended Polk Central High School and has spent her career in the community she calls home.
Over the years, her roles have included working as a bus driver and classroom teacher assistant, serving students from kindergarten through middle school and coaching volleyball, softball and girls basketball.
Today, she is director of Polk Central’s after-school program, where her work still centers on children and relationships.
Collins takes time to get to know not only the students in the program, but their families. Those connections often lead parents to share information that can help her better understand and support their children.
She also puts considerable time into the learning side of after-school care, researching crafts, activities and weekly or monthly themes that combine creativity with opportunities for students to learn.
Families say that combination of structure, care and connection has made a lasting difference.
Kelly Heatherly said Collins supported her son during a time when he especially needed someone who understood him.
“She understood my son and his needs when no one else did,” Heatherly said. “She knew how to handle him. She knew when he needed someone to be patient with him and when he just needed somebody to be there. She helped him feel safe.”
Heatherly said her family is hardly alone.
“She has a way of making children feel like somebody is in their corner, and parents feel like they aren’t having to handle everything alone,” she said.
The Meeks family saw that connection develop through the after-school program.
“Our kids didn’t want to go to after school at first, but now they never want to leave,” the family said. “They come home talking about the things they learned, the special guests who come to present, and the games they played. They have grown in their confidence and their social skills while attending aftercare.”
Jonathan Cavin said Collins’ impact reaches across generations of Polk County students.
“Ms. Marcia shows up for the kids in Polk County everyday,” Cavin said. “She has been doing this in some aspect for the community as long as I can remember, through generations of students.”
That generational connection is also what Collins remembers most when she looks back on more than five decades in Polk County Schools.
“I guess the best memories are the lifelong relationships and lifelong friendships I have made throughout my years with students, parents and staff,” she said.
Some former students have returned as parents. Others who once worked in the after-school program have gone on to careers in education themselves.
For Collins, those relationships are the lasting reward of a career spent showing up for children.
Heatherly put it another way.
“I truly believe people like Marcia are what make a school more than just a building,” she said. “She has helped make Polk Central feel like a community.”
After more than five decades of service, Collins is still doing the work she says matters most – building relationships, helping children feel supported and hoping that, somewhere along the way, she makes a difference in a life.
