The Tennessee Department of Education announced the finalists for the 2012-13 Tennessee Teacher of the Year Award. The nine finalists are elementary, middle and high school educators from each grand division of the state. Grand Division winners and Teacher of the Year will be chosen from this group this fall.
"We can’t celebrate the hard work and dedication of our teachers enough, so it’s a pleasure to recognize these nine educators today," said Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman. “Teachers are an incredibly important factor in the education of our students, and we thank our finalists, as well as the teachers across the state, for all that they do.”
The nine finalists for 2012-13 Teacher of the Year are:
West Tennessee
PK-4
Allyson Chick - Richland Elementary, Memphis City, 5-8
Lisa Roten - Ramer Elementary, McNairy County, 9-12
Melinda Keller, Germantown High, Shelby County
Middle Tennessee
PK-4
Mary Pitner, Learning Way Elementary, Bedford County, 5-8
Stacey Burt, Discovery School at Reeves Rogers, Murfreesboro City, 9-12
Elaine Huffines, Forrest High, Marshall County
East Tennessee
PK-4
Nancy Miles, Woodland Elementary, Johnson City, 5-8
Joan Roueché, Hunter Middle, Hamilton County, 9-12
Renda Crowe, William Blount High, Blount County,
The Teacher of the Year program is sponsored in partnership with the Niswonger Foundation. The foundation provides a monetary award to encourage professional development, graduate study, higher student outcomes and mentoring. As a show of appreciation and encouragement for teacher excellence, the foundation sponsors a banquet each fall for finalists.
The final winner will represent Tennessee in the National Teacher of the Year competition and is an ambassador for education throughout the year. To qualify, candidates must have been teaching full-time for at least five years, have a proven record of using creative, research-based teaching strategies resulting in measurable achievement and be effective school and community leaders. A panel of professional educators from across the state scored applications to identify these finalists.
For more information, contact Kelli Gauthier at 615/532-7817 or Kelli.Gauthier@tn.gov.