Private donors in Wasatch County fund the Distinguished Educator of the Year Award. Last week, 14 teachers were surprised by family, friends, students and colleagues when they were presented with their checks for $11,500.
This is the second year the Distinguished Educator Award nominations were opened to students, staff and community members. The Wasatch Education Foundation received nearly 800 nominations representing the district’s nine school sites.
One classroom teacher from each of Wasatch School District’s five elementary schools, two at each middle school, one at the online Wasatch Learning Academy and four from the high school received checks.
The committee evaluating the nominations looks for strict adherence to the criteria outlined by the award. In part, they consider dedication to student learning and welfare, going above and beyond to inspire and educate students, excelling in understanding and teaching the subject, and attending continuing education.
Wasatch County Education Association President Jeff Danley said they were overwhelmed by the hundreds of nominations.
“We had some representatives from the Wasatch Parent Network and some representatives from the Wasatch Education Foundation. So, you have a big group of people, and really, what we're trying to do with this award is just show the teachers how much they mean to the community, how much the community cares about them and how much we recognize the great work that they do every day.”
Danley said each of the 14 teachers will receive around $10,000 after tax.
“The one thing I would say that was sort of the most, I think, touching for me is we said specifically to the teachers, this money is not to be used for your class or students. This is to be used for you, you, and your family. And I think without exception, the teachers were like, no, I really want to use this money for my class and my students, and that just showed the level of commitment that they have. It's really incredible.”
Danley graduated from Wasatch High School and now has two children attending. Private donors in Wasatch County commit to funding the Excellent Educator Award program for five to ten years. He said they would love to increase the number of awards each year.
“The goal of our nomination process was to reach out to the students, fellow teachers, the community, the parents and just get their thoughts on who are the teachers that are really inspiring students, having an impact on their lives, creating the educational opportunities that we're hoping to create at Wasatch. And we felt like the obvious winners rose to the surface through that process.”
You can find photos of the teachers receiving their awards on the Wasatch Education Foundation Facebook page.
The 2021-22 Wasatch Education Foundation Distinguished Educators are:
Mary Hall
Heber Valley Elementary School
Anay Marquez-Garcia
Yoomi Witkamp
Amy Castro
Old Mill Elementary School
Christine Smith
Garrett Jones
Shannon Mecham
Nicolle McCullough
Trevor Wagstaff
Casey Dudley
Brad Foster
Kim Foy
Jonathan Welling
LeAnne Evans
