Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - April 5, 2002
Contact: Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136
Locke and Bergeson congratulated McKay, the state’s 40th Teacher of the Year, and eight regional finalists during an afternoon awards program in Olympia. The program is part of a national initiative to recognize exceptional elementary and secondary classroom educators.
“The teachers we honor today exemplify public service in its purest form, submitting to causes and projects greater than themselves,” said Locke. “One of David’s impressive accomplishments is guiding senior high school students to investigate a current problem or need in the community and then propose answers and an action plan to resolve it.”
McKay, who earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington and his master’s degree from City University, has been teaching for 17 years.
“I love my job. It's the best thing that's ever happened to me, besides my wife and my children,” said McKay. “I'm going to do my very best to recognize the thousands of hard-working teachers who deserve this award. I share this honor with all of them, with my district, and especially with my students, who love to learn.”
“The Teacher of the Year ceremony is one of the few opportunities we have to collectively celebrate excellence in teaching,” said Bergeson. “Each teacher of the year candidate represents the kind of educational excellence we hope to see in every classroom, in every school. If we hope to provide quality instruction all across our state, we must continue to find ways to not only celebrate teachers like these, but also reward them for their efforts.”
The governor and the school superintendent honored the following regional Teacher of the Year finalists from the state’s educational service districts (ESDs).
The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction administers the state’s Teacher of the Year program with support from the Beresford Company.
Established in 1963, the program aims to increase awareness of the professional classroom teacher and his or her contribution to the education of children, provide unique teaching and learning opportunities for chosen teachers of the year, facilitate interaction and communication between outstanding teachers, and establish public/private partnerships that will support, educate and honor regional and state teachers of the year.
“We want our children to be committed, creative, hard-working and compassionate,” Locke said. “We need to provide them with the tools to lead happy and fulfilling lives. That’s why teaching and great teachers are so vital.”
The governor said, “Our children are inheriting a rapidly changing world, so we need to foster in our children the ability to manage and channel that change in positive directions. To do this, it will not be enough for them to simply adapt to change – we need them to lead, to think critically, to negotiate and to make smart choices.”
Locke added, “We have to think in new ways to address future challenges. We need our teachers and our children to be the trailblazers of that new way of thinking.”
In closing, the governor thanked the teachers for “daring to be first, for being a force for change, for inventing the future, for finding a better way to light the world and to nurture our children.”
Related Links:
- Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - April 5, 2002
Contact: Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136
Gov. Locke, Superintendent of Public Instruction Bergeson honor state’s Teacher of the Year
OLYMPIA – Gov. Gary Locke and Superintendent of Public Instruction Terry Bergeson today honored David McKay, an Aberdeen High School English teacher, as the 2002 Washington State Teacher of the Year.Locke and Bergeson congratulated McKay, the state’s 40th Teacher of the Year, and eight regional finalists during an afternoon awards program in Olympia. The program is part of a national initiative to recognize exceptional elementary and secondary classroom educators.
“The teachers we honor today exemplify public service in its purest form, submitting to causes and projects greater than themselves,” said Locke. “One of David’s impressive accomplishments is guiding senior high school students to investigate a current problem or need in the community and then propose answers and an action plan to resolve it.”
McKay, who earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington and his master’s degree from City University, has been teaching for 17 years.
“I love my job. It's the best thing that's ever happened to me, besides my wife and my children,” said McKay. “I'm going to do my very best to recognize the thousands of hard-working teachers who deserve this award. I share this honor with all of them, with my district, and especially with my students, who love to learn.”
“The Teacher of the Year ceremony is one of the few opportunities we have to collectively celebrate excellence in teaching,” said Bergeson. “Each teacher of the year candidate represents the kind of educational excellence we hope to see in every classroom, in every school. If we hope to provide quality instruction all across our state, we must continue to find ways to not only celebrate teachers like these, but also reward them for their efforts.”
The governor and the school superintendent honored the following regional Teacher of the Year finalists from the state’s educational service districts (ESDs).
- Don Baribault, Northport School District, ESD 101
- Cherri Brondstetter, Wenatchee School District, ESD 171
- Laurie Dye, Bremerton School District, ESD 114
- Jennifer Grajewski, Kent School District, ESD 121
- Patrick Preisinger, Meridian School District, ESD 189
- Barbara Taylor, Othello School District, ESD 123
- Gail Welsh, Camas School District, ESD 112
- Julie Wysong, Grandview School District, ESD 105
The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction administers the state’s Teacher of the Year program with support from the Beresford Company.
Established in 1963, the program aims to increase awareness of the professional classroom teacher and his or her contribution to the education of children, provide unique teaching and learning opportunities for chosen teachers of the year, facilitate interaction and communication between outstanding teachers, and establish public/private partnerships that will support, educate and honor regional and state teachers of the year.
“We want our children to be committed, creative, hard-working and compassionate,” Locke said. “We need to provide them with the tools to lead happy and fulfilling lives. That’s why teaching and great teachers are so vital.”
The governor said, “Our children are inheriting a rapidly changing world, so we need to foster in our children the ability to manage and channel that change in positive directions. To do this, it will not be enough for them to simply adapt to change – we need them to lead, to think critically, to negotiate and to make smart choices.”
Locke added, “We have to think in new ways to address future challenges. We need our teachers and our children to be the trailblazers of that new way of thinking.”
In closing, the governor thanked the teachers for “daring to be first, for being a force for change, for inventing the future, for finding a better way to light the world and to nurture our children.”
Related Links:
- Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction
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