Social studies educator Matt Bernstein named Maine’s 2023 Teacher of the Year

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Social Studies educator Matt Bernstein of Portland, Maine, has been honored as his state’s 2023 Teacher of the Year. Photo Credit: Matt Bernstein

It is always a pleasure to write about exceptional educators who have earned recognition for their work in the classroom. One of these is Matt Bernstein, a high school Social Studies teacher from Maine who has been named his state’s 2023 Teacher of the Year.

Matt teaches ninth grade Humanities and Social Studies at Casco Bay High School in the Portland Public School District in Portland. He has worked for the past nine years. Previously he taught World History and US History at the Greene School, an English Language Education school in West Greenwich, Rhode Island.

In his classroom, Matt says he strives to cultivate meaningful relationships with students through careful listening and offering support. He strives to created daily opportunities for students to experience joy and belonging at school. Clearly, he succeeds. “Mr. Bernstein’s students and colleagues at Casco Bay High School have described him as energizing, empowering, inclusive, a mentor, supportive, patient, and loving,” reports Pender Markin, Commissioner of the Maine Department of Education. The honored educator also says recognizing the voices of students and supporting student activism is the major thrust of his curriculum. And he asserts that the purpose of education is to help students find their way to contribute to a more fair and equitable world.

In addition to creating curriculum, Matt serves his school as a team leader, a crew team leader, and a professional learning community coach, where he facilitates ongoing professional learning with his colleagues. He is also a Social Studies Vertical Content Team member, collaborating with local experts and teachers across the district to develop instructional content.

In addition to his State Teacher of the Year honors, Matt has been named  the 2022 Cumberland County Teacher of the Year. He was named a 2022 National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Scholar, participating in a seminar titled “Teaching the Holocaust through Visual Culture.” And he is continuously innovating. For example, he created We Are an Indigenous Land, a study program where students work to create educational materials for elementary school students about Maine’s Native American tribes and nations.

Matt earned his Bachelor’s degree in History with an emphasis in European History from Bowdoin College, where he was also named a Bowdoin Teacher Scholar.

To read more about Matt Bernstein, click on this link to an article about him published by the Maine Department of Education.

NV teacher Rejily Soriano garners prestigious 2022-2023 Milken Educator Award

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Kindergarten teacher Rejily Soriano of West Wendover, Nevada, has garnered a prestigious 2022-2023 Milken Educator Award. Photo Credit: Elko Daily Free Press

There are many exceptional teachers working in our nation’s schools who are deserving of recognition. One of these is Rejily Soriano, an elementary school teacher from West Wendover, Nevada. She has garnered a prestigious 2022-2023 Milken Educator Award.

The Milken Educator Awards have been described by Teacher Magazine as the “Oscars of Teaching.” In addition to a $25,000 cash prize and public recognition, the honor includes membership in the National Milken Educator Network, a group of more than 3,000 exemplary teachers, principals, and specialists from all over the country who work towards strengthening best practices in education. To learn more, click on Milken Educator Awards.

Rejily maintains high expectations for her kindergarten students. She is also careful to make strong connections with the children, supporting them as they In fact, most of her students are reading by the end of the year, and in May 2022, 89% reached grade level or above on standardized assessments in both math and English Language Arts.

In her classroom, Rejily puts emphasis on developing strong relationships with both students and their families. She communicates with parents often in both English and Spanish, maintaining open lines of communication about all aspects of students’ school experiences. She possesses an unwavering dedication to her job and her students as she works towards successful outcomes for every child in her class.

A teacher leader on her campus, Rejily is the school’s Leader in Me coordinator; she sits on the school improvement committee; and she designs professional development for her colleagues. In addition, she is the lead teacher for kindergarten, mentors new teachers, and is a leader for the school’s social-emotional learning efforts.

Rejily earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Western Governors University in 2017. She earned her Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction there in 2020. She inaugurated her career in education in the Grow Your Own teacher recruitment program sponsored by Elko County School District. Through this teacher recruitment program, she worked with preschool students in the Head Start program before moving up to kindergarten.

To read more about Rejily Soriano, see this article about her published by the Elko Daily Free Press.

Elementary teacher Kelly Hine of Indiana earns district honors

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Beloved elementary school teacher Kelly Hine of Zionsville, Indiana, earns district honors. Photo Credit: Lebanon Reporter

It is always my pleasure to shine a spotlight on exceptional educators from around our country. Today, the light shines on Kelly Hine, an elementary school teacher from Indiana. She was named the 2022 Teacher of the Year for Zionsville Community Schools.

For the past two years, Kelly has taught first graders at Trailside Elementary School. Previously she taught kindergarten at Union Elementary School, and pre-kindergarten for two years at Pleasant View Elementary. In all, her career as an educator spans 18 years, including 11 years at schools in Fairfax, Virginia.

Kelly describes herself as a teacher’s pet in grade school, but she never imagined becoming a teacher herself. But that changed when she became involved in a cadet teaching program in her senior year of high school. As a result of the program, she fell in love with the idea of a career in the classroom.

Kelly says she loves working with younger students, because of their positive attitude and innocent sense of humor. “It’s kind of hard to have a bad day when you’re teaching first grade,” Kelly declares. “I can’t really imagine doing anything else. I still to this day just love going to work and being with the kids,” she reveals. In her classroom, Kelly says positive reinforcement and clear boundaries are her fundamental instructional practices.

Kelly credits her colleagues for a large part of her success as an educator. Observing different teaching styles and participating in professional development has played a big role in her ability to grow as a teacher and stay excited about her work, she confesses. “Teachers need to be lifelong learners,” she says. “You can’t expect your students to be excited about learning if you don’t share that passion with them,” she believes.

Kelly earned her Bachelor’s degree from Maranatha Baptist University in Watertown, Wisconsin.

Teacher Michelle Young appears on The Bachelor, The Bachelorette

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Former elementary school teacher Michelle Young has become prominent in the public eye for her appearances on both The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. Photo Credit: Bachelor Nation

Many fine classroom teachers also find themselves prominent in the public eye for their appearances on television. One of these is Michelle Anne Young, a former elementary school teacher who has appeared on both The Bachelor and The Bachelorette.

Michelle was born in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, on June 3, 1993. She was raised in the nearby town of Woodbury, where she attended public schools. As a high school student, Michelle was a star basketball player at Woodbury High. In fact, she was named the Most Valuable Player by the Minnesota Basketball Coaches Association All-Star Team, and she became a finalist for Minnesota’s Miss Basketball.

After her high school graduation, Michelle attended Bradley University on an athletic scholarship. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Bradley in 2015. While there, she played Division 1 basketball and was named a Two-Time First-Team MVC Scholar-Athlete.

Michelle inaugurated her career as an educator when she accepted a position as a fourth grade teacher at Normandale Hills Elementary School in Bloomington, Minnesota. In her last teaching position, she taught fifth grade at Echo Park Elementary School in Burnsville, Minnesota.

The popular teacher earned nationwide attention in 2021 for her appearances on reality television. During her appearances, Michelle shared her experiences teaching during the pandemic and during the protests following the police-involved death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. “I’m able to go to work and know that I’m making a difference,” she asserted. “Some days it doesn’t feel like that when you get home,” she continued. “It’s been a very difficult year for my students, especially my students of color,” she concluded.

In 2021, Michelle appeared in the 25th season of the reality show The Bachelor, where she rose to runner-up position. That same year, she became a contestant on the 18th season of the reality show The Bachelorette. She also appeared on episodes of the talk shows Live with Kelly and Ryan, Entertainment Tonight, three broadcasts of Good Morning America, and as a presenter at the American Music Awards.

After these appearances, which Michelle described as exhausting, she announced she was taking a break from the classroom for at least one year. But some day, she says, she may return to the profession.