KYLE MURPHYStaff Writer

Kool & The Gang’s classic hit “Celebration” was echoed at the Tullahoma City Schools (TCS) Board of Education meeting this week as the board celebrated, honored and recognized its Teachers of the Year.

TCS Director of Schools Dr. Catherine Stephens said the Teachers of the Year was an exciting time to honor and recognize TCS teachers, as the school district was blessed to have its classrooms filled with talented and dedicated teachers who work tirelessly every day for the best of the students.

“We get to really recognize a few of these amazing people,” Stephens said. “They make a profound impact that is long lasting. Everyone in this room can think of at least one teacher who stands out in your mind, having that long term impact that stays with you.”

One at a time, Stephens introduced its winners, where the principals, or assistant principals, introduced their winners and talked about why they were selected as their Teachers of the Year. The winners were presented with a certificate from a school board member and a gift from Stephens.

Elementary Teachers of the Year

Starting off the proceedings was the four elementary Teachers of the Year, with Bel-Aire Elementary School Principal Dr. Clint Epley introducing the school’s Teacher of the Year, Hailey Brazier. Epley said Bel-Aire was fortunate to have Brazier, who was not only a skilled person in ELA (English Language Arts) but who also cares about her students.

“She builds strong relationships with our students, and she enjoys who they are as people,” Epley said. “She takes an interest in who they are and their families, what they’re going through at home, what they’re going through at school and really try to get to know them to have an impact on their education.”

He also talked about Brazier’s leadership roles, where she meets with other fifth grade teachers to try to bring forth the most positive impact on teaching and learning all across the district. He also praised her for connecting with the community and showing students that there are careers out there that they can focus on.

“Thank you for caring about our kids, learning about them, caring about who they are,” Epley said to Brazier.

The next Teacher of the Year was Megan Ferrell of East Lincoln Elementary School. Principal Rhonda Stevens called Ferrell an exceptional educator who embodied what it means to go beyond for both students and colleagues at East Lincoln.

“She is known for setting high expectations and believing that every child can rise to meet them. Excellence isn’t just a goal, it’s a shared journey where students are encouraged, challenged, and inspired every day,” Stevens said. “And when those goals are she, she never misses the chest to celebrate success, big or small.”

Stevens added that Ferrell understood that recognizing effort grows confidence and creates a culture of joy and learning beyond the classroom.

“Her leadership and passion have made a lasting impact on our community,” Stevens said. “Congratulations to our outstanding teacher.”

Jack T. Farrar Elementary School’s Teacher of the Year, and the Elementary School Teacher of the Year, was Kelly Harper, and both Principal Travis Moore and Assistant Principal Megan Hardy stated the school was blessed to have Harper.

“She teaches from the heart and believes that every single student can succeed,” Hardy said. “She believes in them and sets these high expectations and they meet them.”

Moore followed up and said they sent out an email, unbeknownst to Harper, asking her peers to talk about her, and Moore shared that the biggest word that was mentioned was joy.

“She lights up a room, enthusiasm, energy, ray of sunshine, positivity, highlight of the room,” Moore said. “Not every day is the easiest. We’ve had tears because she loves her students and cares about her students so much and wants to reach them at those levels.”

Hardy added Harper was a leader among her peers, lending a helping hand and serving as a mentor to others, noting she has started co-teaching in the classroom.

“She’s a blessing at Farrar,” Hardy said. “We’re grateful to have her.”

The final Elementary School Teacher of the Year was Robert E. Lee Elementary School’s Courtney Harris. Principal Mary Gilbert said there was much to say about Harris, but shared three things that stood out to her. The first thing was Harris’ love and joy for the REL family, noting the many smiles and hugs as Harris greets people and students in the hallways.

“I’ve seen tears because she just wants to give it her best to do everything for love,” Gilbert said. “Thank you for that.”

The second thing was that Harris has a “quiet servant heart,” and shared an example of receiving text messages from her while cleaning up the science closet, as well as leading REL’s student council, helping with morning announcements and helping to create leaders with the students.

The last thing Gilbert talked about was Harris’ mindset for teaching, and said she would hear the noises of excitement in Harris’ science classroom.

“Courtney, you are the heart of Robert E. Lee,” Gilbert said. “Stay humble and full of joy.”

Middle School Teachers of the Year

For the Middle School, this year’s Teacher of the Year for East Middle School was John Gilmer. Assistant Principal Kaytlan Sisk praised Gilmer for being able to refine his relationship with his students, getting to know and watching them grow personally and academically throughout the year. She added that Gilmer stated that working at EMS was like working with his family, and that they support each other.

“He is an excellent teacher with skills far beyond his years,” Kaytlan said. “He creates a wonderful learning environment for his students, and we are very blessed to work with him each day.”

Meanwhile, West Middle School’s Teacher of the Year, as well as the district-wide Middle School Teacher of the Year, was Blair Clanton. Principal Cindy Herrera praised Clanton for her passion for all students.

“In her class in particular, she would blow you all away on what she does with her kids,” Herrera said. “You can see it in her words, you can hear it in her, you can hear it in her words and see it in her actions. She just beams when she talks about her kids.”

Herrera called Clanton the little sunshine at WMS, and said she did a great job working with everyone, and working with students’ ideas, including the coffee cart, where students prepare and sell coffee to the teachers.

“She’s always coming up with an idea that really incorporates our entire school,” Herrera said.

Herrera also praised Clanton for working with the WMS staff, stating that she’s willing to work to have the best solution for any kind of problem. She then read a statement from members of WMS, who Clanton was the true example of love, patience and dedication.

“When you watch her work with students, you can see her whole heart in every interaction she pours herself fully into the classroom, creating an environment where her students can thrive under her care,” Herrera said. “Blair is not only an exceptional educator, but also a wonderful coworker, kind and understanding, always putting her students first while maintaining the highest level of professionalism.”

High School Teachers of the Year

For the three high school Teachers of the Year, Dr. Greg English first introduced Katie Alderman. He said what made Alderman stand out was her commitment to students as individuals, as she constantly sought out resources beyond the classroom to help them succeed in their internships to become professionals, ranging from arranging transportation to seeking tutoring.

“Katie is truly invested in developing her students as whole people,” English said. “She embodies the compassion and dedication to make our school and community stronger.”

The next high school Teacher of the Year was Byron Locklear. English said when asked what he enjoyed most about teaching, Locklear said it was hanging out and building relationships with his students.

“That spirit of connection defines Byron,” English said. “Byron is the kind of educator every school hopes to have, but they can’t have him.”

The final Teacher of the Year, who was also named the High School Teacher of the Year, was Amy Sisk. He said when asked what she loved about teaching, Amy said she loved laughing and learning new things with students.

“That enthusiasm is evident every single day,” English said. “Her classes are lively, thought provoking, and deeply engaging. She’s absolutely phenomenal and we are fortunate to have her at THS.”

For the Tullahoma Virtual Academy, its Teacher of the Year was Michael Holiday. TVA Director Dr. Chris Treadway said it didn’t matter what he asked of Holiday, as he’s always willing to do it. Other than teaching several courses, Holiday also coached several teams and was on the coaching staff when the Tullahoma Wildcats football team won the 4A State Championship in 2021. The last thing Treadway said about Holiday completing the Apprentice Academy program and bringing his knowledge to TVA’s music production class.

“Mr. Holiday noted he relates to the phrase, ‘great things start in little rooms,’ because it reminds him of the things that were taught or teach in classrooms and the spark of creativity and ultimately the action that it can inspire,” Treadway said.

Novice Teacher of the Year and district winners

Before calling up the three district Teachers of the Year, Stephens announced this year’s Novice Teacher of the Year. The Novice Teacher of the Year is given to teachers who are full-time, certified, in good standing, pre-K through 12th-grade teachers in a state-accredited public or charter school in Tennessee. Said teachers must also spend the majority of the school day in direct instruction to students and must have completed more than 10 months and less than 30 months in Tennessee public or charter school classrooms.

This year’s Novice Teacher of the Year was Race Marin of East Middle School. Kaytlan Sisk said there was no one more deserving, as she had nothing but positive things to say about Marin.

“He has truly become family at East Middle School, and we are so blessed to have him,” Kaytlan said.

She asked him what his favorite aspect of teaching was, and Marin said it was the relationships he forms with students and watching them “grow and persevere through challenges academically and personally, and seeing them turn into fine young men and women.”

Then, Jim Henry of the Tullahoma Education Foundation of Excellence came up next to present district winners Kelly Harper, Blair Clanton and Amy Sisk with checks of $1,000 apiece. He also presented a check to Marin for $500 for being named Novice Teacher of the Year. Henry informed the board and attendees that the Tullahoma Educational Foundation of Excellence has given out $88,000 to teachers and about $661,000 in grants to the school district since the organization’s founding in 1989.