On Tuesday April 14, nine Hall County educators were recognized for their passion and commitment to teaching at the inaugural “Masters in Teaching ... Life Changers at Work” event. The master teacher awards committee of local educational leaders defined a “master teacher” as one who has a deep understanding of their subject matter, has high expectations for themselves and for their students and changes students’ lives by inspiring, facilitating and modeling excellence. In the videos that follow, the nine honorees are shown at work in the classroom and they talk about what motivates them to teach.
Pre-K:
Jean Willers
Founder,
Challenged Child
and Friends
VIDEO
Elementary:
Bertha Shields
Gifted and English for Speakers of Other Languages teacher, New Holland Core Knowledge Academy
VIDEO
Elementary:
Leslie Frierson
Fourth-grade teacher,
Centennial Arts Academy
VIDEO
Middle:
Kathy Mellette
Directed studies teacher at North Hall Middle School; mentorship coordinator
VIDEO
High:
Joel Aquino
Science teacher,
West Hall High School and Gainesville State College
VIDEO
High:
Michael McCann
History teacher, Lakeview Academy
VIDEO
Technical college:
Kim Randolph
Clinical laboratory technician professor, Lanier Technical College
VIDEO
State college:
J.B. Sharma
Physics and remote sensing professor, Gainesville State College
VIDEO
University:
Vince Yamilkoski
Education professor, Brenau University
VIDEO
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