Delaware set to name teacher of the year
This week, Delaware will name its teacher of the year.
Twenty educators already hold the honor for their school districts or charter network, with the Delaware Department of Education recognizing each of them as “vital” to their students’ success. But Wednesday night, in a time when learning across the state continues aims to bounce back from pandemic strain, Secretary of Education Mark Holodick will honor one teacher with the 2024 recognition.
Selection will follow a dinner and celebration at 6 p.m., Oct. 18, in Dover. The public can tune in to a live stream on DDOE’s YouTube channel, which should also be shared through the department’s Facebook page that evening.
Other Delaware educators and students have been earning honors lately, too. Two schools earned state awards for excellence in school counseling support, while several athletes saw their schools earn recognition for sportsmanship.
In this weekly roundup, we’ll catch you up on some education updates you may have missed.
[ Did we miss another good education story? Tell me about it: kepowers@gannett.com.]
Appo and Capital schools land state awards for school counseling
The Sapphire Award for Excellence in School Counseling, now in its fourth year, recognizes school counseling programs in Delaware that are “comprehensive, data-informed and designed to serve all students,” DDOE said last week.
Both Bunker Hill Elementary School and the Kent County Secondary Intensive Learning Center just earned the recognition.
“Both these schools have used data to strategically design services and interventions to improve student outcomes,” said Secretary of Education Mark Holodick in a statement Oct. 9. Holodick said each program combines lessons, small group counseling and individual supports for students.
Brittni Piser is a school counselor within Appoquinimink School District’s Bunker Hill Elementary. She told DDOE she aims to teach students about their emotions and how to manage them, to be successful through both her classroom lessons and small groups. She also noted success with a “check in/check out” program for students who need additional support.
In Capital School District, Andrea Woodard works as a school counselor in Kent County Secondary ILC, focusing much of her work on getting students on track for graduation. She told DDOE she provides interventions like classroom lessons, individual planning and collaboration across the school. This marks the second school in Capital to land the award.
Both schools are now eligible to also receive American School Counselor Association’s “Recognized ASCA Model Program” award, according to the department. The schools will be recognized more formally for these honors during National School Counseling Week celebrations Feb. 5 to 9, 2024.
Also, one Delaware educator herself is up for an individual, national award in school counseling. Kristin Nye, of Red Clay’s Anna P. Mote Elementary School in Wilmington, was named one of five national finalists for the ASCA School Counselor of the Year award.
DIAA names ‘Champions’ in good sportsmanship across the state
Eleven schools were honored for sportsmanship this week by the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association.
Across its 25-year history, the Dale Farmer State Champions in Sportsmanship Award is presented annually to Delaware schools to recognize outfits that have demonstrated a “strong school community commitment to the educational nature of interscholastic athletics.”
Schools had to submit portfolios to DIAA for consideration, and some 37 different schools have won the award since program’s start.
“Sportsmanship is essential to a positive interscholastic athletic experience for students, coaches, and fans. Programs that cherish and value good sportsmanship pave the way for positive and productive adults,” said James Connor, DIAA Sportsmanship Committee chair, in a statement.
“The life lessons learned on the athletic competition surfaces prepare our youth to make a powerful impact in our world. Congratulations to all of our award winners!”
The 2022-23 winners include:
● Caesar Rodney High School — This is the school’s 13th Dale Farmer State Champions in Sportsmanship Award.
● Caravel Academy — This is the
academy’s 14th award.
● Charter School of Wilmington — This is the school’s 10th award.
● Concord High School — This is the school’s 14th award.
● Middletown High School — This is the school’s seventh award.
● Mt. Pleasant High School — This is the school’s seventh award.
● Newark Charter High School —
This is the school’s eighth award.
● Sanford School — This is the school’s 12th award.
● Sussex Tech High School — This is the school’s 17th award.
● Talley Middle School — This is the school’s second award.
● William Penn High School — This is the school’s 25th time winning this award.