Tag Archives: Social Studies Teachers

Educator Chris Dier named Louisiana Teacher of the Year

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Chris Dier, a high school history teacher from Louisiana, has been named his state’s 2020 Teacher of the Year. Now he’s one of four finalists for the national title of Teacher of the Year.

I love to share stories about educators who have earned recognition for their work in the classroom. One of these is Chris Dier, a high school history teacher from Louisiana. He’s been named his state’s 2020 Teacher of the Year. And he’s one of four finalists for the national title of Teacher of the Year.

At one time, Chris planned to become an attorney. However, during his senior year in college, frustrated by a constitutional law course, he accepted his mother’s invitation to observe her teaching a class at Chalmette High School. As he watched his mother, a veteran educator of more than 30 years, Chris was inspired to consider a career in education for himself. “I was immediately taken aback by the atmosphere in her classroom,” he recalled. “Students were learning, discussing, asking questions and developing a sense of self in real time. It was the first time I watched a class from the teacher’s perspective. After that day, I decided to give teaching a go,” he confessed.

St. Bernard Parish School District Superintendent Doris Voitlier cannot praise Chris enough. “His ability to connect with students from various backgrounds and abilities is a true testament to his compassion and professionalism,” declared Voitlier. “Dier’s passion is deeply rooted in providing an equitable education to all students and supporting fellow teachers to be culturally responsive,” she continued.

Chris earned his Bachelor’s degree in History from East Texas Baptist University in 2010. He had moved to Texas in high school after evacuating from Hurricane Katrina. After college, he returned to Louisiana. He completed a Master’s degree in Education 2013 and a second Masters degree in Educational Leadership and Administration in 2018, both from the University of New Orleans.

After he earned his degree, Chris inaugurated his career as a Special Education teacher at Trist Middle School. He taught there for two years. He also taught at St. Bernard Middle School for three years. Currently, Chris teaches World History and AP Human Geography at the Chalmette High School in St. Bernard Parish. He’s taught there for the past five years.

To read more about Chris, see this link from the University of New Orleans.

Social Studies teacher and politician Della Au Belatti of Hawaii

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Social studies teacher and politician Della Au Belatti of Hawaii

I love to tell stories about talented educators who also make a mark in politics. One of these is Della Au Belatti, a high school social studies teacher who also serves in the Hawaii State House of Representatives.

Della was born on March 14, 1974, in Manoa Hawaii. As a young girl, she attended high school at the Maryknoll School in Honolulu.

Della earned her Bachelor’s degree in History from Princeton University in 1996. That same year, she completed her student teaching at Trenton Central High School in Trenton, New Jersey. After her graduation, she accepted a position as a social studies teacher at her alma mater, Maryknoll High School. She taught there from 1996 to 2000.

In 2003, Della earned her Juris Doctorate from the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaii, Manoa. From 1993 to 1996, the talented educator spent time as an intern for United States Senate in the office of Hawaii Senator Daniel K. Akaka. She also worked as a law clerk for both Circuit Court Judge Dexter D. Del Rosario and Associate Justice Simeon R. Acoba.

In 2006, Della was elected to represent District 24 in the Hawaii State House of Representatives on the Democratic ticket. She served in that capacity from 2007 to the present time. She has served on the Committees for Health, Human Services, and Judiciary. In 2017, she was appointed to the position of State House Majority Leader.

To learn more about Della Au Belatti, read her biography at VoteSmart.

Social Studies teacher and Massachusetts politician Annissa Essaibi-George

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Social Studies teacher and Massachusetts politician Annissa Essaibi-George

I enjoy telling stories about hardworking educators who also experience success as politicians. One of these is Annissa Essaibi-George, a high school social studies teacher who is also a Massachusetts politician. She serves as the member at large on the Boston City Council.

Annissa was raised in Boston, Massachusetts, the daughter of immigrants. Her mother, whose parents were Polish, was born in a displaced persons camp in Germany. Her father was born in Tunisia. The couple met in school in Paris, married, and immigrated to the United States in 1972. They  landed in Boston.

As a young girl, Annissa graduated from Boston Technical High School. The institution is now known as the John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science.  As a high school student, she got involved in student government. She even spoke out at a City Hall Plaza rally protesting school budget cuts proposed by Ray Flynn, then mayor of Boston.

After her high school graduation, Annissa enrolled at Boston University, where she majored in political science. During these years she completed an internship in the office of US Senator Max Baucus (D-Mont.) in Washington, DC. Once Annissa earned her Bachelor’s degree, she accepted a position as the Student Services Liaison at the Boston Private Industry Council. While in this job, Annissa earned her Master’s degree in Education from the University of Massachusetts, Boston.

Once she earned her Master’s, Annissa inaugurated her career in education as a social studies teacher at East Boston High School. She instructed courses in Economics, Business Management (as part of the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship), Financial Literacy, and Health & Human Services to juniors and seniors. She also served as the assistant softball coach. Annissa taught at the high school for 13 years, from 2001 to 2013.

in November, 2015, Annissa was elected on the Democratic ticket as a member at large on the Boston City Council. There she serves as the Chairperson of the Committee on Homelessness, Mental Health, and Recovery. But she says her main priority is issues related to schools. “Education will always be at the top of my list,” declares Annissa. “I’m a teacher. I’ve had that very real experience. That’s one reason the voters picked me—my intimate knowledge of education as a teacher and as a parent, and as a product of the Boston public schools,” she concludes.

To read more about Annissa, see this link at the City of Boston.

Alaska’s Amy Gallaway named her state’s 2020 Teacher of the Year

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Alaska’s Amy Gallaway, a social studies teacher in Fairbanks, has been named her state’s 2020 Teacher of the Year.

I love to tell stories about teachers who have been recognized for their outstanding effort in the classroom. One of these is Amy Gallaway, a high school social studies teacher from Fairbanks, Alaska. Shes been named her states 2020 Teacher of the Year.

Amy inaugurated her 20-year career as an educator in Alaska in 1993. That was the year she was working as an archeologist in Wrangell St. Elias National Park. While working at that job, she took a seasonal position as a teacher’s aide in Glennallen School. She loved that temporary job so much she decided to go back to school to earn her teaching credentials. Amy had already completed the requirements for her Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology at Northern Arizona University. To earn her Master’s degree in Secondary Education and Teaching, she enrolled in courses at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. She completed that program in 1999.

After earning her teaching credentials, Amy accepted her first teaching job in Nuiqsut, an Inupiaq village on the Colville River. There she became involved in local civics projects. She wanted to show her students how they could use their personal power to benefit the entire community.

In 2002, Amy started working for the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District. Currently, she works at West Valley High School in that district. There she teaches history, government, and career education to high school students.

Because of her strong belief that learning should be empowering, relevant, and community-oriented, Amy is a teacher mentor for the national We the People civics program. The program emphasizes critical thinking skills and features a simulated Congressional hearing with judges from the community.

To read more about this amazing educator, click on this link to Amy Gallaway of Fairbanks named Teacher of the Year.

Teacher George Anderson named Iowa’s 2020 State Teacher of the Year

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Teacher and assistant football coach George Anderson named Iowa’s 2020 State Teacher of the Year.

Today we shine a spotlight on educator George Anderson, a teacher and coach from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. George has just been named his state’s 2020 Teacher of the Year.

The honored educator teaches at John F. Kennedy High School, where he has worked for 13 years. There he teaches history and also serves as the assistant football coach. He is also a member of his school’s leadership team.

George was raised in the Murrells Inlet area of Garden City, South Carolina. He graduated from Socastee High School. As a young man, he served his country in the US Marine Corps. While in the military, he was an infantry scout for the Second Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion. When he received his discharge in 1999, he moved to Iowa and took a job as a construction framer. While working in this job, he worked his way through college. In 2006, he graduated with a Master’s degree in Social Science Education from the University of lowa.

“As a teacher, I like active rooms, students moving around and discussing the material with other students,” George says. “I like to see students engage with the material of history in a way that isn’t just fact recollection or sequencing events. I want student-centered dynamics in the classroom,” he continues. “I do not want to be the center of attention,” he confesses.

To read more about this Chalkboard Champion, see this article published in The Gazette.