The Evening of Excellence awards show, attended by educators and business leaders, recognizes outstanding educators who have been nominated at their schools and named finalists as Pinellas County Outstanding Educators. One of the finalists listed below will be named the Pinellas County Outstanding Educator of the Year and given the opportunity to represent Pinellas County for the title of Florida Teacher of the Year.
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2009-2010 Outstanding Educator Finalists
Creativity and Innovation
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Vanessa Fox - Watch Video
Marjorie Rawlings Elementary
5th grade reading and writing teacher
Bachelors in Elementary Education with a minor in Special Education
Other career Highlights
I have been a team leader for a team of 10 teachers.
I launched the first-ever Tropicana Speech Competition in my school for grades 3-5.
I am a member of the Discipline Committee and the facilitator of the 5th Grade Safety Patrol in my school.
In order to earn extra technology equipment for my classroom I completed the Pinellas County ITEC training.
Last year, I became National Board Certified.
Why you Enjoy Teaching:
I enjoy teaching for so many different reasons. It is difficult to focus on just one. When I watch a child learn something for the first time, or accomplish a goal that he/she never thought was possible, that to me is fulfillment. When genuine smiles beam from students’ faces because they are proud of their successes, ultimate satisfaction is brought into my life.
I also love teaching because it is more than just a career to me. As a teacher I realize that I am shaping the adults of our future. It’s amazing to me that I get to teach my students to be life-long learners and problem solvers who will make our world a better place.
To me, there is no better profession than being a teacher.
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Jeanne C. Gagliardo - Watch Video
Safety Harbor Middle School
8th grade algebra & pre-algebra
B. S. Boston U. M. Ed. USF
Other Career Highlights
National Board Certified Teacher
Outstanding Math Teacher 2005-06
Who’s Who Among American Teachers 2005 & 2006
Item writer for Met metrics, trainer & developer of general knowledge review classes
Why you Enjoy Teaching: I enjoy teaching as it affords me an opportunity to develop students into life-long learners.
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Kerry Giordano - Watch Video
Thurgood Marshall fundamental MS
6th grade Social Studies
B.A./ M.A. International Relations
National Board Certified
Social Studies Department Head Thurgood Marshall Fundamental Middle School 2006-2007, 2008- Present
Other Career Highlights
Kerry’s list of awards and professional recognitions is extensive with many honors repeated in successive years. Some of her most recent accomplishments include:
Multicultural Liaison Thurgood Marshall Fundamental Middle School
Earning many award honors beginning in 2005 thru 2009
State Farm Multicultural Reading Grant Winner – 2006
Pinellas County Economics Lesson Plan Contest Winner
An award winner since 2006 most recently 2nd place in 2009
Governor’s Award in Economics – 2009
Space Florida Zero Gravity Grant Winner - 2009
Why you Enjoy Teaching: I was not going to be a teacher! I came from a long line of teachers and I thought their jobs were boring – doing the same thing day in and day out. However, the role of the teacher has followed me every day of my life. I taught Spanish to elementary students in college, I was a training officer in the Army, and I worked with handicapped adults helping them to achieve to their fullest ability. The crowning moment – my aha – came as a substitute teacher!
Anyone who has ever spent a day as a substitute teacher knows it is one of the worst jobs ever and I loved it! I found myself motivated and challenges by imparting what I knew to the students. Boring? What was I thinking in my youth, this job was great.
Now that I spend my days with students in my own classroom I never cease to be amazed by what I can teach them while inspiring them to do their best. Each lesson I prepare is a journey for me. It takes me from the standard through a process, an evolution, to create discussions and activities that bring the subjects alive to my students. The best day is when a student tells me how they used to hate Social Studies but now they love it, now they watch the history channel or choose to do outside research on a topic from class. That is my reward for a job well done.
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Commitment to Children and Families
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Lorrie Bennett - Watch Video
Frontier Elementary
Pre-K
Bachelor of Arts in Education
Master of Education
Other Career Highlights
Acquired 4 grants for the classroom from Pinellas Education Foundation and the Junior League in the areas of literacy and visual impairments.
Mentored new teachers in the Pre-K programs and instructed several pre-k workshops in the county.
Initiated, designed and ran Camp COAST in association with the Suncoast YMCA. This camp has served over 50 children with special needs in the past 2 years and is still a part of the YMCA’s programs today.
Why You Enjoy Teaching: Every child with special needs with whom I have ever worked has displayed an inner strength and perseverance that I have been drawn to. I am energized by their positive attitude! As an early childhood educator I help children acquire the skills that the rest of us take for granted, but are big milestones for these students. These are skills such as walking, using the bathroom independently, saying first words, or laughing and smiling with another child. Sometimes I am the first professional to work with a family and help them deal with many of the issues of having a child with special needs. My goal is to help my students leave my classroom with a sense of pride in themselves and a love for learning. My goal for the families is for them to leave with a sense of hope in their future and an assurance that educators are on their side.
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Robin Hedman - Watch Video
Mildred Helms Elementary
Bachelor’s in Communication Disorders and Audiology
Other Career Highlights
Currently serves on the Technology Committee, Technology Club for Colleagues Foundre & Facilitator, Green Team Founder & Facilitator, Commitment to Character Committee and Yearly Food Drive Facilitator.
Why You Enjoy Teaching: As a teacher, it is my goal to provide a positive learning environment with differentiated and individualized instruction so that all students may achieve their own greatest success.
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Michelle Lampert - Watch Video
Palm Harbor Middle
7th grade civics
Bachelors in Social Studies Education, Bullying Prevention Specialist, and Lead Investigator
Other Career Highlights
Currently piloting the new Civics curriculum.
Girls and Boys Volleyball Coach having won several North County Titles.
Coordinator and volunteer for Clothes for Kids and Salvation Army donation drives.
Mentor for new teachers and co-operating teacher for interns.
Currently working on Master’s degree in Educational Leadership.
Why You Enjoy Teaching:
I enjoy teaching because I love to see my students grasp new ideas and apply them to the real world. It is very rewarding to me to have them figure out their own points of view and learning to share their thoughts, while respecting others ideas, even though they may not agree with them. I love being part of their daily lives because they make me laugh, they make me cry, and they make me a better person.
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Ambassador to the Profession
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Marlene Frisse - Watch Video
Orange Grove Elementary
Bachelor’s in Early Childhood Education
Other Career Highlights
Served on various committees and acted as a mentor to new teachers, volunteers, and interns.
Why You Enjoy Teaching:
I enjoy teaching because there is no better feeling than seeing a child learn and grow right in front of your eyes.
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Courtney Mack - Watch Video
Blanton Elementary School
3rd grade
Bachelors Elementary Ed.
USF Masters Degree Elementary Ed w/ emphasis in math & science
Other Career Highlights
Served as tem leader for 6 years
Organized a math family fun night in a local community grocery store.
Along with team, helped create grade-level pacing guides.
Why you Enjoy Teaching: Teachers are so many roles wrapped up into one. We are facilitators of learning, we are role models of young impressionable minds, for some children, we are a parental figure. We are creators, we are researchers, we are encouragers, we are lifelong learners, and we are advocates. What we get to do for children is something I struggle to put into words. Watching a child learn and grow is an amazing experience. I believe teaching is one of the hardest, yet most rewarding jobs and I feel grateful to be a part of it.
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Commitment to Improvement of the Profession
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Marcene "Marcy" Juergens - Watch Video
Osceola Middle
6th grade elective
B.S. in Education
Other Career Highlights
Seminole Chamber of Commerce Teacher Tribute 2002-03.
Presenter to represent Osceola Middle as a Finalist for the One to One Laptop Project.
Presenter at the One to One Laptop National Conference.
Why You Enjoy Teaching: I cannot believe this is my twenty-fifth year of teaching! The experience has been very rewarding and challenging at times as well. It is these rewards and challenges that keep me enthusiastic and motivated to constantly encourage my students to do their best. Working with young adults has always been appealing to me, and interacting with them has been my comfort zone and has allowed me to be myself. I find that their creativeness and eagerness to learn inspires me to continually improve myself and the way I teach. I try making learning fun yet real and meaningful. My students keep me young at heart and remind me every day what it is like to be a kid again. Over the years, I have discovered that teaching is so much more than lesson plans and delivery of content. The real discovery for me has been that all of these young adults have worth, and all are capable of learning. My most enjoyable and treasured moments are when there’s a smile that comes from understanding, when an idea comes to fruition, or when my students are confident enough to be themselves. My students tell me how much they like being in my class, but truly I am the one who is lucky to have them!
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Andrea Maria Sanchez - Watch Video
Bay Point Elementary Magnet
MA of Science in Information Studies, Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education-Curriculum Integration Specialist
Currently teaching: Integration of Technology/K-5
Other Career Highlights
Andrea Sanchez earned her School Library Leadership Certificate at the Florida State University in Tallahassee. Her first teaching assignment was as a 4th grade teacher at Bay Point Elementary Magnet school where she worked on special projects that included the media selection committee in addition to her classroom role. She taught first grade from 2003 to 2009. She expanded her personal professional development and training and also worked as the Professional Development Facilitator, 2001 to present. She became the Curriculum Integration Specialist at Bay Point Elementary Magnet in 2009.
Why you Enjoy Teaching: My passion is to keep learning. I try to pass my passion along to others for self discover as opposed to having to do for them. I enjoy all the “aah ha” moments I experience with students on a daily basis. For instance, a student will ask me how to spell a word and he/she will spell it out to me correctly. I usually reply, “Now why did you ask me how to spell it when you already knew how?” Most often the student’s eyes open wide with excitement that builds on their confidence. I especially enjoy seeing the cross-curricular connections my students make. I believe that teaching goes beyond just teaching the material … it’s about the personal connections you encounter with students and faculty members. I enjoy being an educator because in order to teach you have to be willing to learn and I am always searching for innovative ways to introduce concepts to both faculty members and students.
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Dr. Deborah L. Stevens - Watch Video
Bay Point Middle School
BA Biology, MA, Educational Leadership, and Ed.D. Organizational Leadership from Nova Southeastern University
Science - 8th grade
Other Career Highlights
Dr. Deborah Stevens studied Organizational Leadership and Instructional Technology at Nova Southeastern University and has a BA from the University of South Florida in Biology. She received her MS in 1997 in Educational Leadership and a Doctorate in Organizational Leadership in 2005. She has been employed as a public school educator for 18 years and has experience in management, problem solving and creative design. Additional experiences that she brings to Pinellas County Schools include using technology as an instructional tool in the classroom and using computer applications to facilitate leadership roles within her students and colleagues. She has integrated technology with creativity as a resource for learning in the classroom at all levels of instruction.
Why you Enjoy Teaching: I enjoy teaching because I like to see my students learn. I have grown to appreciate watching their misconceptions become a thing of their past and how they expand their minds by processing the next concept. What I enjoy most about teaching is what my students teach me. They show me how they want to learn, what stimulates their interest, and most of all they keep my mind current with societal trends. It is a fluid relationship that brings with it so many intrinsic rewards that are priceless.
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Inspiring Students to Performance at Higher Levels
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Rosemary Collins - Watch Video
Safety Harbor Middle
B.M. in vocal performance
M.M. in vocal performance
Other Career Highlights
National Board Certified Teacher, 2008
Secondary Music Teacher of the Year, Pinellas County Music Educators Association, 2009
Emerging Leadership Program, Florida Music Educators Association, 2009-present
Why You Enjoy Teaching: I enjoy making a difference in the lives of young people through the arts. I am passionate about providing quality musical experiences that will last them a lifetime. I believe that skills learned as a member of a chorus will serve students throughout their education and career, and will make them better people. I love spending my day making music and singing with kids!!!
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2010 Outstanding Educator Winner
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Lisa Fagan-Brown - Watch Video
James B. Sanderlin IB World School
K-5 Library Information Specialist
Library Information Specialist
Other Career Highlights
I began my seventeen-year teaching career at R. L. Sanders, teaching special education. My love of learning and this new fangled thing called a network of computers, led me to obtain my Masters Degree in Curriculum and Instructional Technology. This newfound skill in technology led to an opportunity to participate in a grant that would implement the Read 180 program at numerous schools. A chance encounter at a technology conference provided an opportunity to open a new media center at a school seeking authorization for the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme ( IB PYP). I have been the Library Inquiry Specialist at James B. Sanderlin for almost seven years. During this time, I applied for an educator’s to Saudi Arabia Experience. I was accepted along with 25 other educators from around the United States. This past summer, I was able to continue my collaboration with other IB educators and become a volunteer workshop leader for the PYP. I am pleased and humbled by my most recent recognition for Outstanding Educator.
Why you Enjoy Teaching: I am fortunate to have the opportunity to be the Library Information Specialist at an internationally minded school where “Teaching and Learning with the brain and heart in mind” is not just our school mission statement; it is the way of work. The joy that comes with this job is watching every “Sanderlin Sea turtle’ grow as they continue through our programme. I get to meet them as a hatchling in Kindergarten and watch them swim off with confidence at fifth grade. I am passionate about creating lifelong inquirers, showing students that I am still a learner. One of the best days of this job was getting a thank-you note from a student saying, “Thank you for giving me hope.” I could not ask for a better gift.
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Brooke Johannessen - Watch Video
Cross Bayou Elementary
3rd grade
Masters – Elementary Ed, B. A. Elementary Ed
Other Career Highlights
ITEC (Integrating Technology to Enhance the Curriculum) participant
SMART Board Referendum Project participant
Reading Units of Study demonstration classroom
Math Classroom Discussions demonstration classroom
Inquiry Teacher Showcase presenter
Why you Enjoy Teaching: I chose teaching as a career because of my passion for children. I believe in an engaging positive, And challenging environment in which all children can learn. I celebrate those “aha” moments and learn from the struggles as I strive to find ways to make learning more meaningful to my students. I am continually trying to connect the curriculum to my students’ own lives. I am inspired by my children’s dedication and persistence. I love having the opportunity to make a difference in a child’s life every single day!
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