Two educators were honored by Fort ISD at its annual Teacher of the Year Awards dinner and program held at Safari Texas Ranch.
Stephanie Clayton of Sugar Mill Elementary School is the 2017 District Elementary Teacher of the Year and Jessika Hearne of McAuliffe Middle School is the 2017 District Secondary Teacher of the Year.
A kindergarten teacher, Clayton has four years of teaching experience, all at Sugar Mill. She believes that every student can find success by learning from their mistakes.
Clayton ensures that her students feel safe enough to fall and courageous enough to stand back up again. Her passion is developing character in her young students and building relationships with each student who enters her classroom.
Hearne, a sixth-grade math teacher, has taught for five years, with two of those years at McAuliffe. Hearne said that being an educator is the most rewarding and honorable career. She believes that we all need to reward and praise progress, as it will lead to success.
Her biggest accomplishment is watching students who doubted themselves at the beginning of the year, leave with confidence at the end, knowing they will be successful, life-long learners.
“These two teachers, along with the other Teacher of the Year honorees, are building relationships and influencing lives in a big way,” said Dr. Charles Dupre, superintendent of schools. “We are proud and appreciative of their efforts, and I am honored to recognize them for their leadership in the classroom.”
As FBISD’s 2017 Teachers of the Year, Clayton and Hearne each received an engraved crystal award and monetary gift, as well as a Chrome Book and Amazon gift card from the Fort Bend Education Foundation. They will also receive a special Teacher of the Year ring and complimentary photograph.
The two honorees will now advance to the regional Teacher of the Year competition, with a chance of advancing to the Texas Teacher of the Year Program.
Along with each Campus Teacher of the Year, FBISD also honored its 10 Teacher of the Year finalists and six District Rookies of the Year.
Among the finalists were: Elementary level – Lauren Crittenden (Colony Bend), Chad Davis (Jordan), Chastity Gonzalez (Mission Glen), Dana Keen (Seguin) and Kate Faulkner (Settlers Way); and Secondary level – Dr. Kiesha Guillory (Missouri City Middle School), Kelsey Halfen (Dulles High School) and Deshonda Davis (Willowridge High School).