The 2015-16 Teachers of the Year in the Watauga County Schools have been chosen and the new group of honorees includes Allison Sparks of Bethel, Liz Tincher of Blowing Rock, Dorothy Combs of Cove Creek, Amy Lunceford of Green Valley, Brianne Thurman of Hardin Park, Amy Thomas of Mabel, Natalie Willis of Parkway, Laura Huber of Valle Crucis, and Linda Hollar of Watauga High School.
Teachers of the Year are chosen at each school by their professional colleagues. Teachers in all grade levels and subjects are eligible for the award and the nine Teachers of the Year are selected from among over 350 teachers in the WCS system.
“The single most impressive aspect of our school system is the number of truly outstanding teachers in our schools,” said Superintendent Dr. Scott Elliott. “To be chosen as a Teacher of the Year in this district is a great honor, and I extend my congratulations to all nine of these exceptional educators. I also want to thank all of our teachers for their commitment to their students and their profession. There is no work more important than the work of a teacher, and there are no greater teachers than those who serve in the Watauga County Schools.”
The exceptional quality of teachers in the Watauga County Schools is evident in both their credentials and in student performance on state-required tests. A significantly higher proportion of WCS teachers have graduate degrees than teachers across the state and the proportion of WCS teachers who have achieved National Board Certification consistently ranks near the top among the 115 school districts in North Carolina. In the results of state-required testing, students in WCS outperform state averages on End-of-Grade tests in reading, mathematics, and science, and on End-of-Course tests in English II, Math I, and Biology. Students at Watauga High School graduate at a higher rate than the state as a whole and achieve the second best SAT scores and the fourth highest ACT scores out of 115 school districts in NC. Elliott said that the excellent professional credentials and strong results achieved by WCS teachers are impressive, but that he is equally impressed by their quality as individuals. “Our teachers display a level of caring and commitment that is an inspiration to anyone who observes their work. Our families see those qualities reflected in the service that teachers provide to students every day, and it is the main reason that people here really love their schools.”
Each school’s Teacher of the Year will receive an award of $350 from the school system and is automatically a candidate for Watauga County Schools Teacher of the Year. The person chosen as the WCS Teacher of the Year will receive an additional $350 from the school system. Local businesses will also be given an opportunity to donate gift certificates or other prizes to help recognize Teachers of the Year.
The businesses that supported Teachers of the Year with donations last year included Chetola Resort, Chick-fil-A, Stick Boy Bread Company, Panera Bread, Friendship Honda of Boone, AFLAC, Michael’s, Makoto’s, Cornerstone Bookstore, Blue Ridge Vision, and Bandana’s Bar-B-Q. For information about making a donation this year, please contact Human Resources Director Dr. Stephen Martin or Public Information Director Marshall Ashcraft at 828 264-7190.
The WCS Teacher of the Year for 2015-16 will be announced in May after a selection process that includes interviews, unannounced teacher observations in classrooms, and a review of a written statement of teaching philosophy prepared by each candidate. The committee making the selection includes teachers, school administrators, and Jason Cornett of the Watauga County Board of Education.
The current WCS Teacher of the Year is Mary Kent Whitaker, an English teacher at Watauga High School who is the only person ever to win the honor twice. The other Teachers of the Year for 2014-15 include Melissa Miller of Bethel, Janet Orr of Blowing Rock, Cynthia Townsend of Cove Creek, Kirbi Bell of Green Valley, Erin Selle of Hardin Park, Lauren Dotson of Mabel (now an assistant principal at Hardin Park), Susan Suddreth of Parkway, and Leslie Howser of Valle Crucis.
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