Middle school Language Arts teacher Kelsey Stoyanova of Maine has been named her state’s 2022 Teacher of the Year. Photo Credit: Maine Department of Education
It is always a pleasure to share stories about talented educators who have earned accolades for their work in the classroom. One of these is Kelsey Stoyanova, a middle school teacher from Hamden, Maine. Sara has been named her state’s 2022 Teacher of the Year.
Kelsey teaches eighth grade Language Arts and reading at Reeds Brook Middle School in Regional School Unit 22 in Hamden. In her classroom, the honored educator places emphasis on developing relationships with her students. “Relationships are everything,” she asserts. “Form relationships with kids, with colleagues, with the community. Work on trying to be your best self and when you are your best self, the people around you are their best selves too,” she continues.
In addition to her work in the classroom, Kelsey serves as the middle-level Language Arts curriculum leader, working to create and align the curriculum for middle schools throughout her district. She also served on the Equity in Education committee where she designed and implemented her district’s Reads Three Reading Challenge for both students and community members. The committee works to highlight authors and characters of color, women in literature, Asian American/Pacific Islander voices, Hispanic-Latinx award winning titles, Native American heritage, and LGBTQ authors and characters.
Kelsey’s Teacher of the Year honors are not the only accolades she has earned. She garnered the title of 2021 Penobscot County Teacher of the Year. In addition, she was selected as a grant recipient by the Book Love Foundation in 2020.
Kelsey earned her Bachelor’s degree in English Secondary Education and her Master’s degree in Education with a focus on Literature, both from the University of Maine. She also participated in the Maine Writing Project, a summer professional development and leadership institute for writers and writing teachers that is part of the National Writing Project.
You can learn more about this Chalkboard Champion at University of Maine News.
