The 2016 Maine Teacher of the Year will be selected from the 16 honorees and named at a surprise all-school assembly this fall
AUGUSTA – First Lady Ann LePage and Acting Education Commissioner Tom Desjardin marked Teacher Appreciation Week by announcing the top teacher from each Maine county at a State House ceremony today.
Joining the First Lady and Maine’s top education official in recognizing the 2015 County Teachers of the Year was current Maine Teacher of the Year and Skowhegan Area Middle School special educator Jennifer Dorman, Educate Maine Executive Director Ed Cervone and State Board of Education member Alan Burton.
“On behalf of Maine’s 180,000 students, I want to congratulate these excellent educators and the thousands of others like them working in our schools for their tireless commitment to our children and our communities,” said Acting Commissioner Desjardin. “What makes the 16 County Teachers of the Year, and so many others across our state, great is that they believe in every single child they teach. Instead of making excuses, they inspire students and instill them with the skills and confidence they need to realize their incredible potential, no matter their challenges.”
The 2015 County Teachers of the Year were chosen from a field of more than 300 nominees and include:
- Aroostook: Susan Beaulier, Ashland District School, Ashland
- Androscoggin: Debra Miller, Raymond A. Geiger Elementary School, Lewiston
- Cumberland: Talya Edlund, Pond Cove Elementary School, Cape Elizabeth
- Franklin: Brenda LaVerdiere, Academy Hill School, Wilton
- Hancock: Mickie Flores, Deer Isle-Stonington Elementary School, Deer Isle
- Kennebec: Gretchen Nickerson, Helen Thompson School, West Gardiner
- Knox: Fallyn Adams, Union Elementary School, Union
- Lincoln: Jennifer Wright Gregg, Great Salt Bay Community School, Damariscotta
- Oxford: Laurie Catanese, Oxford Hills Middle School, South Paris
- Penobscot: Angela McLaughlin, Glenburn Elementary School, Glenburn
- Piscataquis: Mia Morrison, Foxcroft Academy, Dover-Foxcroft
- Sagadahoc: Johnna Stanton, Morse High School, Bath
- Somerset: Debora Tanner, Skowhegan Area Middle School, Skowhegan
- Waldo: Kathryn Foran, Leroy H. Smith School, Winterport
- Washington: Ben Brigham, Shead High School, Eastport
- York: Nick Wilson, Biddeford High School, Biddeford
Maine’s County Teachers of the Year serve as ambassadors for teachers, students and the efforts underway in Maine’s public schools to better prepare graduates for success in college, career and civic life. During their term, they are available to make presentations to local and regional audiences.
Those honored Thursday will now move forward in an intensive selection process that will include creation of a video showcasing their classroom instructional practices, portfolio development and review, school visits and an interview with a select panel to include the Education Commissioner. Ultimately, three state finalists and the 2016 Maine Teacher of the Year will be chosen and named by the Commissioner at a surprise all-school assembly this fall.
Maine Teacher of the Year is a program of the Maine Department of Education, administered by Educate Maine, a business-led organization working to ensure Maine’s students and workers are the best educated and highly skilled in the world. Executive Vice President of Bangor Savings Bank and Chair of Educate Maine’s Board of Directors Yellow Light Breen said “The Maine Teacher of the Year program is a unique opportunity to promote, support and highlight the teaching profession. The classroom teacher is the backbone of our educational system and we are so pleased to honor the 2015 Maine County Teachers of the Year who will serve as ambassadors for their students, school, county, and teacher colleagues. Congratulations to these exemplary teachers and to all the teachers who were nominated for County Teacher of the Year.” Funding for the program is generously provided by Hannaford, Geiger, Bangor Savings Bank and Dead River with support from the State Board of Education and the Maine State Teacher of the Year Association.
For more information, visit www.maine.gov/doe/toy/.
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