By Matt de Simone
During the Botetourt County School Board meeting for November, Lynne Bolton of the Botetourt Kiwanis Club presented the Educator of the Year Award to Cloverdale Elementary teacher Elise Garrett.
Bolton was “impressed” when she received some of Garrett’s accolades, sharing that “Elise is willing to try new strategies to reach her students and meet them where they are. Along with being a teacher, she is also Cloverdale’s math representative… She goes out of her way to connect with her students and she offers real life activities in her day-to-day teaching. Having her as part of Cloverdale makes Cloverdale a better place. Elise demonstrates a natural ability to problem solve and make the best of all situations.”
Photos courtesy of BCPS
Botetourt County Public Schools staff members Sarah McCormack, an administrative assistant at Colonial Elementary School, and Grace Parker, a science teacher at Lord Botetourt High School, were both recognized as October’s Employees of the Month by the School Board.
“Sarah embraces the unique needs and challenges that come with students with disabilities,” Assistant Superintendent Jordan Pinkard read from McCormick’s nomination. “She works in a self-contained special education class as a one-to-one instructional assistant. Her job is hard and the steps of progress are small but she celebrates every one of them and comes in every day with a smile on her face and the grit and determination in her heart. She is a true gift to the education system and to our school.”
“Grace is a highly skilled teacher who demonstrates exceptional expertise both in her content area and in effective teaching practices,” Pinkard continued when reading Parker’s nomination. “Her classroom is a model of organization and engagement. She goes beyond the curriculum by connecting scientific concepts to real world experiences that impact students’ daily lives. Her ability to make learning relevant fosters curiosity and deeper understanding among her students.”
