May 8, 2023 - The Teacher Education and Mentor (TEAM) Program recognizes educators each year that have seen great success as a Beginning Teacher (BT), Newly-hired Experienced Teacher (NET), or Mentor Teacher. The nomination process was changed this year so that any MCPS staff member could nominate a new teacher (BT or NET) which led to a total of 34 teachers being nominated. See attached for the list of nominated teachers as well as 12 mentors that were recognized for their dedication to supporting new teachers.
Earlier this week, the winners of each award were surprised in their classrooms by Superintendent Dr. Kevin Newman, Executive Director of Student Achievement Craig Gfeller, members of the Professional Learning and Communications teams. They will be recognized at the School Board meeting on May 16.
Congratulations to all nominees for being recognized by your colleagues for the great work you are doing!
BT Teacher of the Year: Abigail Huser, Metz Middle
It is always exciting to step into Ms. Huser"s classroom. Quite often, you can hear the excitement of students doing hands-on and completing experiments that include making observations, recording results, and analyzing data. There really is not a front row seat in Ms. Huser's classroom because she is constantly interacting with each student as she zig zags between student work areas and rotates around the classroom. Ms. Huser’s lesson planning begins in her CLT meetings where she works closely with the instructional facilitator to lead the collaboration of the 7th grade science team around aligning instruction and assessments to the VDOE standards. Due to extenuating circumstances, Ms. Huser has been asked to do a lot during this school year; she not only plans instruction for her students, but she also collaborates and shares her plans with her colleagues, leads her instructional team, and serves as the volleyball and girls soccer coach. Ms. Huser demands the most from her students and athletes, yet she is very supportive and honest about their strengths and weaknesses in the classroom, the volleyball court, and on the soccer field. We are grateful for all that Ms. Huser does for the students, and her colleagues, at Metz.
NET Teacher of the Year: Akane Hanson, Baldwin Intermediate
Ms. Hanson truly treats each day as a fresh new opportunity for students to learn in music class. She is always highly professional and has a calm, patient approach towards her students. She presents her expectations clearly and makes every effort to reach all of our students. Ms. Hanson has that remarkable teacher radar that can detect which students need her support and she immediately takes them into her care. She often asks clarifying questions to make sure that she understands the work that she is assisting students with, and I can always rely on the support she provides aligning with expectations and rigor of the assignment. Ms. Hanson is passionate about instilling her passion for music to each and every one of her students. She continually finds ways to motivate her students in class, whether it's through modern music pieces or finding musical games to keep students intrigued. Ms. Hanson has adapted well to the culture of our building and of MCPS and is excited about improving on her practices for next year. Ms. Hanson is a treasure at Baldwin Intermediate School!
TEAM Mentor of the Year: Brittney McMullan, Haydon Elementary
Ms. McMullan has been a resource that I can lean on for anything. What I appreciate the most is that she will spend some of her personal planning time answering any questions I have and showing me how to do something new that I can implement into my classroom. Ms. McMullan has helped me with planning meaningful activities/lessons for my class, has shared resources to help with whole group and small group instruction, and shared instructional strategies to keep my students engaged in instruction during both small group and whole group. Ms. McMullan has given me a great deal of support specifically with using IMSE for my ELA block and has shown me some very useful and engaging ways to use those resources with my students to help support phonics and reading in my classroom. Ms. McMullan is very reliable, trustworthy, flexible, and adapts to any situation given to her. She has been so patient with me, as I am always going to her for various questions/concerns that I have, whether it be for management or instructions practices. Ms. McMullan has been nothing short of an amazing mentor.
