The St. Croix District Office of the Insular Superintendent has announced four candidates in line for the top teacher spot in the district.
This year’s candidates are Jordan Albany, elementary teacher at Pearl B. Larsen PreK-8 School; Zahra O’Reilly-Bates, elementary teacher at Ricardo Richards Elementary School; Ericka Hansen, secondary social studies teacher at Central High School and Joann Lewis, secondary science teacher at St. Croix Educational Complex High School.
One of the four will be announced as the 2020 St. Croix District Teacher of the Year at an invitation-only ceremony at Gertrude’s Restaurant on October 16.
District Teacher of the Year candidates are first identified as the top teacher at their respective schools and then are selected as finalists from a pool of teacher applications submitted to the superintendent’s office. An independent selection committee reviews the applications, conducts one-on-one interviews with applicants and completes a formal classroom observation to choose the top candidates in the district.
Throughout the one-year tenure, the District Teacher of the Year will serve as a teacher-leader in various capacities within the district.
“We have outstanding finalists in each district who have demonstrated excellence in the teaching profession,” Education Commissioner Racquel Berry-Benjamin said. “Each of the candidates are well deserving of this honor.”