14 May 2004
Winner Will Receive $5,000 Award
DALLAS–General Superintendent Mike Moses will announce the 2004-2005 Dallas Independent School District Teacher of the Year Tuesday, May 18, at the district's awards banquet.
Sponsored by Central Market HEB, the event will be held at the Dallas Arboretum, Rosine Hall, 8525 Garland Road. A tram tour of the garden will be offered from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The dinner and program begin at 6:30 p.m. The theme is Inspiring Leaders, Igniting Hope.
Teacher of the Year finalists are:
•Felicia D. Gibbons, six years of experience, W. H. Gaston Middle School. "Oftentimes people go through life in careers where they hate the people they work with, hate going to work, and they feel as if they accomplish nothing. But with teaching it is different."
•Kendall Ann Hasse, eight years of experience, Woodrow Wilson High School. "As a teacher, I have to know my students' background, family, hobbies, interests, aversions, challenges, hopes, and goals. In order to motivate, I must know what will help the child to succeed and what will send the child out of the door."
•S. Elaine Thomas, 34 years of experience, Pleasant Grove Elementary School. "I believe the two major issues in public education today are the lack of new teachers who enter the teaching profession as a lifetime career and teaching the at-risk student."
•Karen Wilt, 29 years of experience, George Peabody Elementary. "I have spent many years perfecting my craft through college coursework, staff development and experience. Each year, as I improve, the achievement of my students also improves, as exemplified by their reading abilities and test scores."
The winner of the Teacher of the Year award will receive $5,000 and will represent the district in the next level of competition at the Region 10 Education Service Center. Each of the three finalists also will receive $1,000 courtesy of Central Market.