Duties: The Alabama Teacher of the Year serves as a full-time ambassador for the teaching profession for one year by speaking to civic and professional organizations, K-12 schools, colleges, and universities; conducting workshops for teachers; and writing newspaper and magazine articles.

 

Eligibility: The Alabama Teacher of the Year Program is open to any public school certified classroom teacher, librarian, counselor, or other certified individuals whose major responsibility is to work with children in a K-12 setting and provide learning opportunities to meet the academic goals and graduation requirements set by the Alabama State Board of Education. Individuals must be selected by the faculty at the participating school and serve in a capacity for which they hold proper certification. 

 

Process: Our community and students are fortunate to have schools filled with exceptional teachers. From this pool of outstanding educators, each school selects a Teacher of the Year. A district-wide committee then chooses one elementary (K-6) and one secondary (7-12) Teacher of the Year to represent Athens City Schools in the state competition. The selection committee is comprised of five members: the superintendent of schools, a member of the Board of Education, two previous Teacher of the Year winners, and one parent-at-large from the Athens City Schools system. The selection process is anonymous and based on merit. The district-level Teachers of the Year are announced at the annual Athens City Schools Foundation Teacher of the Year Gratitude Banquet. Those two winners are then forwarded to the Alabama State Department of Education, where they compete with other teachers from across the state for the Alabama Teacher of the Year Award.