By Pamela Goetting
Special to the NKyTribune
The Florence Rotary Club honored four outstanding Boone County Teachers at the 2017 Teacher of the Year program.
This annual event awards each teacher with a plaque and banner, Kentucky Colonel, Citations from the Kentucky Senate and House of Representatives, Boone County Citation, and $250 check donated by Heritage Bank to the non-profit of their choice.
Jessica Isaacs of the Imagineering Academy teaches grades 9 – 12 in an alternative program that seeks to prepare students for life after high school. As an example of creating a life changing experience for her classes, she helped raise thousands of dollars to enable a group of students to see the musical “Hamilton” in Chicago. Through her knowledge of art, she teaches talents like photography, sculpture, woodworking and design planning, skills that build confidence and creativity in students.
According to one of her nomination letters, Isaacs “is the teacher students will talk about to their own kids as a testimony on how once upon a time, a teacher changed his or her life.”
Mary Claire Cockrell is a special education teacher at the Alternative Center for Education (ACE). This program specializes in helping students with severe academic and behavioral issues in grades 9 – 12. According to her principal, Cockrell not only works in the challenging environment at ACE, she thrives in it.
Wrote one of her freshman students, “One time, I walked out of class yelling like a crazy person, and Ms. Cockrell asked me what the problem was. I told her I had a bad day, and she said “Let’s change that to a good day.” She didn’t have to do that but she did. She could have just let me get in trouble, but she didn’t. She wants the best for her students.”
Chris Miller is the Director of Bands at Walton Verona High School. The many letters of recognition that he received cited his tireless work for music education for all of Northern Kentucky. He not only leads the traditional concert band, but also an after school jazz band class, in school percussion ensemble and marching band, as well as participates in community bands, band competitions and other music groups and associations.
His creativity, enthusiasm and joy in sharing music with others was described by multiple parents, teachers and students. Said one 10th grade student about Miller, “He is not a teacher of the year, but a teacher of a lifetime.”
Roseann Simmons is a second grade teacher at Walton Verona Elementary. In addition, she organizes reading nights, bakes and prepares food for school events, mentors and tutors students, and just makes learning fun. Wrote one parent of a special needs child, “With her warmth and patience, she eased the anxiety of entering a new environment. As a parent, there is nothing that means more than that my children are loved at home and at school.”
Concluded another parent, “Both my sons had Ms. Simmons as a teacher, and she continued to work with them over summer breaks, not just as a teacher, but as a life coach. She definitely is a woman who loves her job and loves impacting the children and parents around her.”
Established in 1945, the Florence Rotary Club consists of nearly 100 business and community leaders from across Northern Kentucky.
It is part of Rotary International, an organization of 1.2 million neighbors, friends, and community leaders who come together to create positive, lasting change in its communities and around the world.
Pamela Goetting is president of the Florence Rotary Club