Latest news with #GoldenAppleAwards
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
MCSD May Golden Apple Award: Matt Jenkins
MONTROSE, Colo. (KREX) — Golden Apple Awards have been in Montrose for many years, but one friendly face has been the reason it's even possible! As the school year comes to a close, his time with the Golden Apples has as well. Matt Jenkins has been the public information officer for the Montrose County School District for five years. Part of those responsibilities has also been being the liaison between WesternSlopeNow and the school district, helping surprise teachers with a basket every month. At the end of this school year, he is moving on to other fields of education. 'I'm going to be moving back to the classroom,' Jenkins tells WesternSlopeNow. 'I'm really looking forward to getting work back with the kids. I've had a blast working in district administration and communications and messaging, but it'll also be great to be back in the classroom.' During every single Montrose Golden Apple over the last year, Matt has been there making each educator smile. Matt's positive attitude and optimistic approach to education has left an impact on his coworkers that won't soon be forgotten. MCSD receptionist Jacey Hopper recalls her time working alongside Jenkins, 'He has a great face on every time he comes in. He's laughing, he's sharing, he always has that very consistent mood and he is a wonderful coworker and colleague for the community.' Congratulations on being May's Golden Apple Award winner! To nominate someone for a Golden Apple Award, visit WesternSlopeNow's contest page. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Joplin teachers honored with 2025 Golden Apple awards
JOPLIN, Mo. — Teachers in the Joplin School District are being recognized for their hard work. On Monday (5/5), the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce along with Liberty Utilities, announced the recipients for the 2025 Golden Apple Awards. The awards ceremony took place at Corley Auditorium on the campus of Missouri Southern State University. This year, 52 teachers from Joplin`s private and public schools were nominated by peers, students, and parents. For 40 years, the Golden Apple Awards have recognized excellence in the teaching profession and informed the public of exceptional quality of instruction in the Joplin community. 'The fact that a program can last for multiple decades, honoring sometimes a profession we take for granted is just amazing, and it's got to feel good to the school district, to the teachers, to the parents, to the kids. I remember nominating teachers when I was in high school, and I think we have a lot of that, that happens with these awards,' said Valerie Searcy, Chairperson for the Joplin Schools Golden Apple Award. Here are the 2025 Golden Apple Award winners: Kindergarten — 2nd Grade: Stephanie Lynch, Soaring Heights Elementary 3rd — 5th Grade: Erin Geeding, McKinley Elementary 6th — 8th Grade: Ann Landrum, New Heights Christian Academy 9th — 12th Grade: Brad Douglas, Joplin High School Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
D51 March Golden Apple Award: Yvette Caldwell
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) — The Golden Apple Awards are all about highlighting and celebrating educators all across the district, but none of that would happen without paraeducators. Yvette Caldwell is a classroom paraeducator for Chatfield Elementary School. During her eight years of education work, half of that has been with this one school. Ms. Caldwell goes out of her way to make kids feel safe and comfortable. 'It's good for the parents to know that their kids are coming to a safe place where they're loved and taken care of and taught what they need to be taught,' says Caldwell. 'It's helping the kids learn and also making sure that they know this is a safe place and that they have somebody that they can come to.' Schools are a very delicate system, and without paraeducators, that system can freeze. When it comes to recognizing how important paraeducators are, Chatfield's principal is all in! Dave McCall, principal of Chatfield tells WesternSlopeNow, 'We can always rely on Ms. Caldwell to go the extra mile, helping out staff and students, making sure that the little things that need to get done are done.' Congratulations on being March's Golden Apple Award winner! To nominate someone for a Golden Apple Award, visit WesternSlopeNow's contest page. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Nominations being accepted for Golden Apple awards
Nominations for the 2024–2025 Golden Apple Awards are being accepted through 5 p.m. Friday, March 21. This is the 40th year for the program, which recognizes instructional excellence in Joplin's public and private schools. The online nomination form is available at and can be filled out there. Paper nomination forms are available at local schools and can be returned the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, 320 E. Fourth St. Awards are given in four categories: grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12. Nominated teachers are eligible to win if they are a certified classroom teacher who instructs students on a daily basis, if they are teaching during the 2024-2025 school year and if they have not been a previous recipient of the award. Winners will be announced May 5.
Chicago Tribune
03-03-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Crete-Monee, TF South teachers named finalists for Golden Apple Award
When Crete-Monee High School Principal Lamont Holifield noticed longtime history teacher Sarah Valerio lose passion for teaching history four years ago, he knew she needed a change. 'After you've been teaching for a long time … you kind of end up losing that motivation that led you into the profession in the first place,' Holifield said in an interview Monday. Holifield said he put Valerio in charge of a nascent program aimed at preparing interested students for teaching careers, in part to help reignite her own excitement for teaching. He also knew she would be good at it. While continuing to teach AP U.S. history, Valerio has tripled the size of the Education Pathway program, hoping to combat a national teacher shortage and prepare students for a simultaneously difficult and rewarding career. Valerio's efforts led Holifield to nominate her for the 2025 Golden Apple Awards, of which she is one of 30 finalists. 'We have a lot of people who are in the classroom doing their thing,' Holifield said. 'But is it about them or about the kids? With Sarah, I see it being about the kids.' Another Golden Apple finalist, working at Thornton Fractional South High School about 15 miles away, is Spanish language teacher Jordan Oliva. In his fifth year of teaching in District 215, Oliva has already created spaces to help foreign language students feel more connected and recognized. Oliva was drawn to teaching while attending Shepard High School in Palos Hills, through a program not unlike the one Valerio runs at Crete-Monee. 'They placed me in a Spanish classroom, and it was amazing,' Oliva said. 'That's where I was like, 'yeah, I think this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.'' Oliva himself is Mexican and grew up speaking Spanish. As a teacher in Lansing, he has prioritized creating opportunities to encourage pride in his and other cultures for students of all backgrounds to appreciate. 'I want them to feel comfortable in whatever skin they're in, to be able to express their love for not only their culture, but for other cultures as well,' Oliva said. Oliva said his proudest achievement as a teacher is his ability to connect with students and make them feel valued in their accomplishments. Last year, he formed a Spanish Honor Society to celebrate 'the kids that are sometimes not seen.' Participation in the group provides graduation honors and activities for students who are in their third year of a Spanish class and have maintained 3.5 GPA or above in their Spanish classes. 'These are the kids who maybe really excel at language, but they're really not good at math or they're really not good at English, for whatever reason,' Oliva said. 'These are the kids that are really only going to get recognized if we have this type of recognition.' Valerio said she also feels grateful to be making an impact on the students she leads and to continue building out the program that 'reminds me that 'yes, this is what I want to do.'' She said she hopes to create more opportunities for students to intern in classrooms in the grades they hope to teach. Valerio also said she also feels grateful to Holifield and other high school teachers for supporting her and the students in her program. 'It is a school effort,' Valerio said. 'There is no way I could do this on my own.' The Golden Apple Foundation is an Illinois nonprofit that aims to honor and retain educators 'who advance educational opportunities for students,' according to the organization's website. Recipients are expected to be named next month and will receive a cash award of $10,000, $5,000 of which will go to a project of their choosing.
