Teachers from Westbrook Middle School, Morse High School in Bath, an elementary school in Boothbay and a South Berwick elementary school are among 16 educators named Tuesday by the state as Maine’s 2014 county teachers of the year.
Under a new selection process that allowed the public to nominate teachers, one of the 16 county educators will be chosen in the fall as Maine’s Teacher of the Year for 2015.
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County winners were announced Tuesday at the State House in Augusta by Maine Department of Education Commissioner Jim Rier and officials from Educate Maine. Educate Maine, a nonprofit organization based in Portland, agreed last year to partner with the state to manage the Maine Teacher of the Year program.
Dolly Sullivan, program director for Educate Maine, said in a news release that county teachers will now serve as ambassadors for teachers, students and quality education while competing for the 2015 Teacher of the Year award – a process that consists of producing a classroom video, school visits by a review panel, a review of a professional portfolio, oral presentations and interviews.
Review panelists will include former teachers of the year, Department of Education officials and members of the professional and business community.
Sarah Brokofsky, a fifth-grade teacher at Westbrook Middle School, was nominated by a parent. Brokofsky, who teaches language arts, math, social studies and science in Westbrook, has been teaching for nine years and holds a master’s degree in teaching and learning from the University of Southern Maine, according to a profile posted on the Maine Teacher of the Year website.
Other teachers from Greater Portland named as county teachers of the year are: Kate Smith, a music teacher at Central Elementary School in South Berwick; Eric Varney, a science teacher at Morse High School; and Cordelia “Cory” Chase, a grades 7-8 English language arts teacher at Boothbay Regional Elementary school.
In February, the state announced it was going to allow the public, as well as school officials, to nominate educators for the Maine Teacher of the Year program. Since 1954 only school principals and superintendents could nominate a candidate for consideration.
King Middle School language arts teacher Karen MacDonald is Maine’s 2014 Teacher of the Year. MacDonald was invited to meet with President Obama this month in Washington.
Staff Writer Dennis Hoey can be contacted at 791-6365 or at:
dhoey@pressherald.com
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