For more than 12 months, we’ve been navigating a pandemic. A major hurdle that caught us off-guard was how to keep our children moving forward with an education system administered via distance learning or hybrid scenarios.
It’s been difficult for students, parents, and teachers alike — and that’s putting it lightly.
None of us signed up for this.
If we have learned anything over the past year, it is that our teachers not only play an important role in our children’s education – but also their social skills. How do they interact with others? That’s just as significant as learning math, English, reading, and science.
This past year has brought on all sorts of issues. Technology disruptions. Social disconnects. Trying to stay focused among distractions.
Each year for the past four years, the Fillmore County Journal has coordinated a moment of special recognition for area teachers on Teacher Appreciation Day – which is May 4, 2021.
In a special section in the first week of May, we publish the names of all teachers in each school district, their years of service as a teacher, and what subjects or grades they are currently instructing.
For 2021, given the pandemic, it seems like our fifth year of presenting the Teacher of the Year Award will be just as unique as the last.
And, thankfully, we have some locally-owned businesses that have continuously made a commitment to this important point of recognition. Each year, Drury’s Furniture provides a brand new La-Z-Boy recliner to the Teacher of the Year. Additionally, Ody’s Country Meats & Catering provides a Green Mountain Grill. And, Rushford Foods, Preston Foods, and Harmony Foods provides a $500 gift certificate. Collectively, these local businesses contribute over $2,600 in gifts to the Teacher of the Year. All of these local business owners help to make this award even more special.
If you’d like to nominate a teacher for this recognition, please see page 51 of today’s Fillmore County Journal. The deadline for nominations is noon on Tuesday, April 13, 2021.
A Neanderthal says
Teacher appreciation?. What other job can you work 24/7. That is 24 days a month, 7 months a year. And still complain that you are over worked and under paid. I had to work year around. Maybe that is the answer. I remember when my kids went to Spring Valley and my daughter, who was in grade school at the time, brought home a flyer telling me that I should vote for a new referendum. I do not recall what the purpose of the referendum was. I asked my daughter where she got got it and she told me her teacher gave it to her. I was just livid. The teachers union was weaponizing the kids in telling parents how to vote. Pretty sickening. I lost respect for the profession after that.