The Athens City Schools Foundation congratulates you for being selected as Teacher of the Year (TOY) for your school! Being named Teacher of the Year by your peers is a great honor. We are excited to celebrate your accomplishment at the annual Teacher of the Year Gratitude Banquet, which will be held on Tuesday, November 12 at the Athens State University Ballroom. We know you are excited as well, and that you have questions. The purpose of this page is to serve as a one-stop shop for information related to the 2024 Teacher of the Year Gratitude Banquet. 

IMPORTANT 2024 DATES & DEADLINES

TICKETS AND SEATING

We know that you will want to celebrate your special night with your closest friends and family beside you. Each Teacher of the Year will have a reserved table for you and (7) guests of your choice. If you have any special seating needs, please contact us directly. The Athens State University Ballroom is ADA compliant and handicap accessible. To reserve your tickets, complete the Guest List Form by Thursday, October 24. Please note, it is common for each TOY to invite their school principal(s). If you plan to do so, please be sure to include their name(s) as one of your seven guests. If you have any special seating needs, please contact us directly. The Athens State University Ballroom is ADA compliant and handicap accessible.

Please note, each TOY may invite up to 7 guests. No additional tickets will be available. 

WHAT TO EXPECT AS TEACHER OF THE YEAR

As part of celebrating you as Teacher of the Year, we will work together to produce two interviews: one for print and one for video. We have worked to make this process as simple as possible, as we are very mindful of your busy schedule shaping the hearts and minds of students each day. 

TEACHER PROFILE

Our partners at The News Courier will publish a Teacher of the Year Series featuring the profile of each TOY. The interview for your profile is structured as a Google Form for your convenience. We ask that you please complete your interview profile questions by Wednesday, October 2. We will let you know the dates that the series will be published. Click Here to see an example of a TOY profile.

PROFILE PHOTO OR "HEADSHOT"

In addition to the TOY profile, a profile photo (headshot) will be needed for The News Courier series. The responses given in the The News Courier profile, along with the headshot, will also be used to produce the printed program for the banquet and other publicity. You are welcome to submit a high-quality photo image or Christy can come to your school to take a photo. Photos are due to Christy by Wednesday, October 2. Please either send Christy Hubbard a high-quality photo or email her to schedule a time next week to take a photo. 

SPOTLIGHT INTERVIEW VIDEO

As part of the event celebration on the evening of the banquet, we will share a short video highlighting each Teacher of the Year. To get an idea of what the finished video product looks like, Click HERE to check out last year’s TOY Video. 

Video Session Your on-camera interview will occur sometime between Wednesday October 2 through Friday, October 11. Please schedule your interview session by Wednesday, October 2. Your video session should be scheduled around your planning (include either 30 minutes before your planning or 30 minutes after your planning). Please indicate your 3 preferred windows of time on the Google Form. Christy Hubbard will schedule and send you a calendar invite. 

• • We will conduct an on-camera interview with each TOY.  This should be recorded in a quiet place for just the TOY and the interviewer (Christy). Typically, your classroom during planning is ideal. Interview questions will be sent prior to the interview so that you will have time to prepare. This filming will take approximately 30 minutes.
  • We will take short video footage of your students and your classroom at work. This piece will be video only (no audio) of you, in your element, teaching and interacting with students. This will occur either before or after your planning/video interview. This filming will take approximately 15 minutes.
  • We will interview three students on-camera. This occurs during class time, after we take the class video footage. This interview is conducted in either in the hallway or the library. Please select three students to be interviewed, and prepare them briefly beforehand. Christy will ask the students about the things that make you a special teacher. The student interview will be independent of your interview - we want the words they share about you to be a surprise! This filming will take approximately 15 minutes.

STATE TEACHER OF THE YEAR PROGRAM

The official State of Alabama Teacher of the Year program is administered through the Office of Curriculum and Instruction and is separate from the Foundation event (Teacher of the Year Gratitude Banquet). For questions regarding the State of Alabama Teacher of the Year Program, please contact the Athens City Schools Curriculum Director Mr. Garner Ezell at garner.ezell@acs-k12.org.

If you have any questions about any of the above information, please do not hesitate to reach out to Christy at (256) 233-6602 or christy.hubbard@acs-k12.org.