MONCKS CORNER, SC โ At its annual Teacher Forum Induction, the Berkeley County School District (BCSD) honored its 2014 school-level Teachers of the Year and announced its top three Honor Roll teachers.
The annual ceremony was held at Crowfield Baptist Church and featured the talents of Cane Bay High Schoolโs Cobra Quartet. The Forum and district congratulated and recognized the 41 school-wide
winners.
For the top three Honor Roll educators, who will advance to compete for the 2014 district-level Teacher of the Year honor, the following descriptions were shared with the audience:
- Boulder Bluff ElementaryโCarolyn Hill Mullinax: โTeaching was not her first choice of a career. While in college her mother tried her best to get her to go into teaching, but she wanted to be a graphic designer. She worked as the Head of the Graphic Design Department for ten years at the Charleston Naval Base until the base closed. Obviously, she went on to become a teacher. In her professional biography she wrote, โMy very first teacher, my mother, knew who I was before I even knew. So I guess mothers do know best! I could not imagine what my life would be like now if I was not a teacher…Art is not a hobby…Art is who I am…and teaching is not what I do…it is who I am.โ”
- Marrington ElementaryโLauren Reeder: โAdmittedly, this Teacher of the Year was quite a handful as a student in fourth grade student. She was inspired by her fourth grade teacher Mrs. Woodruff, who showed her patience, love, and kindness no matter how trying she became. Her teachers throughout school became the mentors that cultivated her love for theater and speech – and instilled in her a desire to do likewise for other children. In her biography she wrote, โI knew in my heart that I wanted to make a difference in children’s lives, invest in them and love them just as my teachers had done for me.โ”
- Goose Creek HighโHeather Ducker: โWhile working in an attorney’s office after college, she witnessed a court case in which it was decided that a 15-year-old would be tried as an adult for murder. She kept thinking to herself that day of how different the life of that child might have been if a responsible adult had stepped in and taught him empathy, problem solving, or just plain right from wrong. In her biography she wrote, โI left the courtroom that day…and decided I was going to use my degree to make this world a better place. I decided on that day that I would save as many children who entered my life as needed. I decided on that day that I would be the only responsible person that many of them knew. I decided on that day to always make my classroom a safe place for students….and today there is nothing more rewarding to me than seeing a student maximize his or her potential in life.โโ
The district’s Teacher of the Year will be announced on Friday, March 28 at an annual breakfast with the Berkeley Chamber of Commerce, Santee Cooper and Trident Technical College.
The other top semifinalists for the district-level Teacher of the Year award are:
- Goose Creek PrimaryโDana Wiggins
- H.E. Bonner ElementaryโSherry Hyatt
- Hanahan MiddleโAlexandra Davis
- ย Marrington MiddleโCarrie Courtney
- Stratford HighโLTC (Ret.) Samuel Blanton
The other school-level award recipients are:
- ย Berkeley ElementaryโHeather Chappelear
- Berkeley IntermediateโMelinda Miller
- Cainhoy Elementary/MiddleโSylvia Williams
- Cane Bay ElementaryโBecky Hill
- ย College Park ElementaryโJessica White
- Cross ElementaryโNicole Simone Wilborn
- Daniel Island SchoolโJames Mitchell
- Devon Forest ElementaryโKelley Myrick
- Hanahan ElementaryโElaine Berndt
- ย Howe Hall AIMSโJami Garrard
- J.K. Gourdin ElementaryโShyvonne B. Alford
- Sangaree ElementaryโLauren DeTreville
- Sangaree IntermediateโChristina Short
- Sedgefield IntermediateโAidra V. Shaw
- St. Stephen ElementaryโErika Myers
- ย Westview ElementaryโLauren Bates
- ๏ทWestview PrimaryโMelanie Hofstrom
- ย Whitesville ElementaryโJennifer L. Smalarz
- Berkeley MiddleโJulia Stanley
- Cane Bay MiddleโChelsey Mintz
- College Park MiddleโDeanna Harrell
- Macedonia MiddleโTracy Williams
- Sangaree MiddleโRonald Wiggins
- Sedgefield MiddleโTamara-Lynn Sweatman
- St. Stephen MiddleโCharity Gwen Carpenter
- Westview MiddleโDavid Holaday
- Berkeley AlternativeโLisa B. Swiney
- Berkeley HighโTamara Moore
- Berkeley County Middle CollegeโLance J. Parrish
- Cane Bay HighโSherry Norris
- Cross HighโShamika Smalley
- Hanahan HighโHeather Wilkerson
- Timberland HighโLori M. Cox
