Release Date: Oct 4, 2012 8:30 AM  

Nineteen Delaware teachers have been nominated for the honor of being named Delaware’s Teacher of the Year for 2013. Selected from among the 9,000 public school teachers in the state, each nominee represents one of the state’s 19 school districts.

Gov. Jack Markell will announce the winner on Tuesday, Oct. 23, during the annual awards dinner. The reception begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Dover Downs Hotel and Casino in Dover.  Funding for the award ceremony is made in part by a grant from the ING Foundation.

The candidates were nominated by their districts during the 2012 calendar year because of their superior ability to inspire students with a love of learning, exemplary demonstration of professional traits and strong sense of dedication and devotion to teaching.

“These teachers are exemplary representatives of the outstanding teachers working in our public schools across our state,” Secretary of Education Mark Murphy said. “They are driven by passion for their profession and dedication to their students’ success. Each one of them would represent our state well as the 2013 Delaware Teacher of the Year.”

Each nominated educator submitted a detailed portfolio exemplifying his or her teaching philosophy. Five Delaware Department of Education staff members independently evaluate each portfolio. A former state Teacher of the Year and a member of the DOE staff also visit each candidate’s classroom to observe his or her teaching.   

Taking into consideration the ratings from the portfolio review and classroom observation, another independent panel of non-DOE judges then selects the one teacher who will serve as the 2013 Teacher of the Year. The teacher chosen to become the State Teacher of the Year will become Delaware’s nominee in the national program sponsored by Target as a project of the Council of Chief State School Officers in partnership with the ING Foundation.

The Delaware Teacher of the Year also takes on the important task of representing all teachers in the state, addressing community groups, business leaders, legislators and educational organizations to inform the public about education in Delaware.

By action of the General Assembly, the Delaware Teacher of the Year will receive a $5,000 grant to use for the educational benefit of his or her students, as well as a personal grant of $3,000.  Additionally, all nominees will receive a $2,000 grant from the state.

Information on this year’s nominees and quotes from their essays on why they became teachers follow. Photos of the nominees are available here.

Katie Martinenza

Appoquinimink School District

Olive B. Loss Elementary—Grades 1-5 music

Nine years teaching experience

 “I can vividly remember the classroom that I had set up in the basement of my childhood home. I played school for hours in the classroom, emulating all of my teachers. Secondly, I love kids and have always been drawn to their sponge-like quality and desire to learn new things.”

 Sarah Rusk

Brandywine School District

Hanby Elementary School—Grade 5

Nine years teaching experience

“I was that typical teen who wanted to blend in, but there was one thing the set me apart … my green and purple, personalized Land’s End lunch bag. At that time in my life, I could have cared less about saving the Earth one paper bag at a time; I just wanted to look “cool” like the rest of the packers. As my interest in science and the environment escalated, I realized the importance of reusing. My green and purple bag is the reason I am a teacher.”

Karen Hruz

Christina School District

George V. Kirk Middle School—Grade 7 social studies

Twenty-two years teaching experience

“I was the originator of Saturday School. No, not the Saturday School where today’s students attend due to infractions committed during the week, but a school where brothers, sisters, neighborhood children (and even pets) were taught what I had learned at school during the previous week. I would gather my class around my chalkboard easel and begin filling their minds with all the interesting new information I had learned at school.”

Julie Alexander

Colonial School District

Harry O. Eisenberg Elementary—Grade 3

Seven years teaching experience

“Growing up in a family of seven children and being the only girl, my job was to entertain and keep my younger brothers busy. Every afternoon I would sit them down in front of my chalkboard and we would play school. I knew then that teaching was part of me and I longed for the day when I would have my own classroom.”

Donna Poore

New Castle County VoTech School District

St. Georges Technical High School—Grades 10-11 social studies

Five years teaching experience

“I will never forget the day I walked into Ms. Harlan’s U.S. history class. The lights were off, the room was hot, and jungle sounds played from the old cassette player in the back of the classroom.  As I looked around, I was instructed to quickly hide myself amidst the sea of overturned desks. When all students were in place and the bell had rung, Ms. Harlan said very quietly, ‘Welcome to Vietnam.’ ”

Patricia Dallas

Red Clay Consolidated School District

Richardson Park Learning Center— Pre-school

Nineteen years teaching experience

“It was the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie ‘Kindergarten Cop’ that made me realize I could be an early childhood teacher.  I have always enjoyed working with young children. Growing up I looked after my younger brothers, babysat and volunteered at A.I. duPont Hospital for Children. I entered undergraduate school working toward a dual major in nursing and young exceptional children.”  

Susan Passwaters

Cape Henlopen School District

Milton Elementary School—Grades K-4 special education

Six years teaching experience

“ ’You would make a wonderful teacher, Susan!’ This was an exclamation I heard many times growing up. Whether it was playing school at home, babysitting, leading a platoon drill during JROTC, instructing middle school cheerleaders or assisting a fellow classmate with studies, those words turned into a compliment from family members, employers, coaches, friends and teachers.”

Thomas Slavens

Delmar School District

Delmar Middle School—Grade 8 social studies

Twenty-six years teaching experience

“My journey into a career in education began at the age of 18 as the result of an auto accident. I had just graduated from high school, hadn’t been a particularly great student academically, had no plans for college, or any specific career goals. The physical limitations caused by my injuries forced me to re-evaluate life. I decided to enroll in college to study religion. I remember the moment a teacher publicly praised my performance on a test. In that instant, I was hooked on education.”

Cynthia Baker

Indian River School District

Millsboro Middle School—Grade 8 social studies

Twenty-three years teaching experience

“When our youngest child entered kindergarten, I knew I wanted to set the college example for my family. I knew early I would focus on the social studies path. Mr. Polk, my seventh grade social studies teacher, showed me what teaching should be. He loved his students, and I remember being excited in his class about almost everything he taught because he was excited and enthusiastic.”

Crystal Ellison

Laurel School District

Laurel Middle School—Grade 8 special education mathematics

Five years teaching experience

“I knew technology was on the rise, and being a driven young woman, I wanted a high-paying career. Based on that, I chose to go to college to become a computer programmer. I wanted to be the go-to girl, the problem-solver. While going to college at night and working at a child development center during the day, I began to notice a pattern. I loved working with children and utterly disliked my college career choice.”

Laura Amidon

Seaford School District

Seaford Central Elementary—Grade 4

Twelve years teaching experience

“At a young age, I had to deal with the strong possibility of losing my father. I clearly remember one day my fifth grade teacher pulled me into the hallway after noticing that I was having a tough day. She talked with me and made me feel like it was normal to be confused and upset. I had never had anyone relate to me in such a manner and I have never forgotten, and never will forget, the impact she had on me that day.”

John Sell

Sussex Technical School District

Sussex Technical High School—Grades 11-12 English

Twenty-two years teaching experience

“My earliest memories are of my mother walking through the door, exhausted after a 10-hour shift but still ready to read us a few nursery rhymes from the worn pages of our Mother Goose book. Mom instilled in us the joy and love of reading and learning. Dad made sure that education came first in our house and schoolwork was always valued over other pursuits.”

Constance Bean

Woodbridge School District

Woodbridge High School—Grades 9-12 health/physical education

Six years teaching experience

“My coaches and teachers helped me to find a healthy way to not run away from my problems but face them and win. Together they gave me hope and an outlet, a way to channel everything going wrong in my life into something good and healthy. I knew after I graduated and made it that I had to become a coach. I had to help students just like my coaches had done for me, because each kid deservers to have a fighting chance.”

Kimberly P. Simmons

Caesar Rodney School District

W. Reily Brown Elementary—Grade 1

Eight years teaching experience

“I grew up in a household of educators. My parents showed me both the rewards and challenges that teaching holds and I decided early on that this was the profession for me. In high school, I was given the opportunity to tutor one of our school’s senior football players in geometry. My high school tutoring experience and my parents’ endeavors were the main factors that ultimately led me to teaching.”

Jennifer O’Keefe

Capital School District

South Dover Elementary—Grades K-4 reading

Ten years teaching experience

“When I was a student, I had to work hard to learn to read and often fell somewhere in between the group that could read anything and the group who could read nothing. I could appreciate the natural ability of some students and felt compassion for those who struggled because I struggled too at times. That is what made me want to be an educator.”

Clara Conn

Lake Forest School District

Lake Forest Central Elementary—Grades 4-5 reading specialist

Ten years teaching experience

“My parents immigrated to the United States when they were in their early twenties. They came to the U.S. without knowing the language, having a job or having much extended family support. What my parents did bring with them was their perseverance, work ethic and compassionate hearts. Even though my parents did not have much, they taught me that you should still aim to make a difference in the lives of people you meet.” 

Michele McKenzie

Milford School District

Lulu Ross Elementary—Grade 5 English language arts/math

Six years teaching experience

“I would talk with my grandfather about his years as a chemistry teacher and the impact he had on students’ lives. I watched my mother grade endless stacks of papers and swore I would never hold a profession that required so much homework, yet you could find me helping her at every turn. For my high school internship I ended up at Lulu Ross Elementary. What an amazing experience to see my greatest role model, my mother, as she effortlessly managed behaviors, moved instruction, and showed love and compassion to her students.”

Sean P. Kenney

POLYTECH School District

POLYTECH High School—Grades 9-11 algebra/geometry

Sixteen years teaching experience

“There were 11 students in class during elementary school. Nearly everything I did while growing up was connected somehow to my grade school. I participated in sports, plays, singing competitions, student government, spelling bees, quiz bowls  and countless other activities. My teachers were involved in every one of the activities. They showed me that school was more than learning; it was a place to belong.”

Stefanie Ralph

Smyrna School District

Smyrna Middle School—Grade 7 agriscience technology

Five years teaching experience

“Can you imagine seeing a little girl in a garden digging in the dirt, planting flowers, pulling weeds and looking at bugs instead of riding bikes or playing with Barbie’s during the summer months? Can you imagine that same girl 20 years down the road still playing around in the dirt and in the garden? That little girl just happens to be me.”

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