Teacher of the Year

What are the benefits to educators?

By participating in the Tennessee Teacher of the Year program, educators have the opportunity to:

·       be celebrated and honored for making exceptional gains with students,

·       expand knowledge of education policy and participate in local, state, and national policy discussions,

·       serve as spokesperson and advocate for the education profession,

·       receive state and national professional learning opportunities which improves teaching and learning practices,

·       hone public speaking skills,

·       meet and network with other exceptional teachers across the state and build lifelong friendships and professional colleagues, and

·       become inducted into an amazing network of statewide awardees, and become connected to an impactful, ongoing body of work that engages you as a professional long after an awardee’s service year.

What are the benefits to schools and districts?

By participating in the Tennessee Teacher of the Year program, districts and schools have the opportunity to:

·         celebrate excellence in education by publicly honoring hard working, successful teachers.

·         attract local, state, and national attention,

·         allow the district’s honorees to serve as a voice for the education profession, thus putting the district on the map and attracting educators to the district, and

What do CORE Region Teacher of the Year finalists do?

·         Serve a one-year term on the Tennessee Teacher Advisory Council.

·         Travel or virtually connect with stakeholders across the state and their regions to share their expertise with community groups, businesses, government officials, and future teachers.

·         Identify and advocate for educational issues.

What does the Tennessee Teacher of the Year do?

·         Represent Tennessee at all required National Teacher of the Year events including several national leadership conferences and the national recognition week in Washington, D.C.

·         Respond to and fulfill Tennessee Teacher of the Year speaking requests, presentations, etc.

·         Serve a two-year term on the Tennessee Teacher Advisory Council.

·         Travel the state and their regions to share their expertise with community groups, businesses, government officials, and future teachers.

·         Identify and advocate for educational issues.

In order to be considered for the state-level award, a Teacher of the Year candidate must:

• be a full-time, certified, in good standing, pre-k–12 teacher in a state-accredited public or charter school in Tennessee at each stage of the recognition process (school, district, region, grand division, state, and national levels),
• spend the majority of the school day in direct instruction to students,
• have a minimum of three years of experience as a teacher in Tennessee public or charter schools, and
• have a track record of exceptional gains in student learning.

Teachers of the Year at all levels must:

• Be a facilitator of learning, skilled in implementing research-based and creative teaching strategies.
• Show evidence of positive teacher effect over time related to student achievement through formal and informal documentation.
• Be able to explain, discuss, and defend a personal philosophy of teaching.
• Have a broad understanding and current trends and issues in education.
• Be poised, articulate, enthusiastic, and energetic.
• Be exceptionally dedicated to the teaching profession.
• Have a superior ability to instill in students a love of learning.
• Be recognized as leaders in the community as well as in the school.
• Show active involvement and leadership in professional development and extra-curricular activities.
• Have the respect and admiration of students, parents, and colleagues.

For School Level Teacher of the Year

For School-Level Teacher of the Year

·         The department recommends that districts share the goals of the Teacher of the Year program, eligibility, and selection criteria with teachers and principals to inform their nominations. Each school faculty may choose a teacher(s) in each category to participate in the system competition. Categories consist of grades pre-k & elementary, middle, and high school. Please note that these categories refer to the grade taught by the teacher and do not refer to the grade structure or designation of the school.

·         While multiple teachers from each grade band may be selected for Teacher of the Year at the school level, it is recommended that the number of teachers chosen in each category does not to exceed one per 20 faculty members (or portion of 20) in that category.

·         It is recommended that school-level Teacher of the Year finalists complete part I of the Teacher of the Year application (or some comparable district application). The school-level Teacher of the Year finalist should submit applications to the director of schools (or designee) for the district-level selection process.

·         Each principal submits the school-level Teacher of the Year Report Form to the director of schools.

TOY District-Level Report Form

For System-Level (School District) Teacher of the Year

·         District selection committees should include educators with a variety of experience, such as curriculum supervisors, principals, teacher leaders, and previous Teachers of the Year (district, region, grand division winner, or state Teachers of the Year), to review applications of each school-level Teacher of the Year. Each selection committee should include diverse representation based on gender, race, subject areas, and the grade bands to be considered (grades pre-k & elementary, middle and high school).

·         Committees select one teacher from each category (grades pre-k & elementary, middle and high school) to represent the district in the region-level selection process. Please note that these categories refer to the grade taught by the teacher and do not refer to the grade structure or designation of the school.

·         Director of schools (or designee) must submit the names of the district-level Teachers of the Year using the online district-level Teacher of the Year Report Form by 11:59 p.m. CT on December 2, 2024.

·         After director of schools (or designee) submission, each district-level Teacher (from each category) must complete part I of the Teacher of the Year application and submit electronically by 11:59 p.m. CT on February 3, 2025.

For Region-Level Application

• District-level Teachers of the Year must submit an electronic application no later than 11:59 p.m. CT on February 3, 2025 in order to participate in the region-level Teacher of the Year selection process. A link to the online application will be provided to finalists.  Please type responses directly into the online form. Do not exceed any word limits noted in the application.

For State-Level Application

• Region-level Teacher of the Year finalists will be notified that they are eligible to advance to the next stage of the selection process and must complete part II of the application no later than 11:59 p.m. CT on April 1, 2024.
• Completed applications will be submitted electronically. A link to the online application will be provided to finalists. Please type responses directly into the online form. Do not exceed any word limits noted in the application.. 

• 2024-25 Tennessee Teacher of the Year Process Overview(webinar; PowerPoint): This short video provides an overview of the 2024-25 Tennessee Teacher of the Year process and what you can expect from each stage in the selection process.
  
• Approaching the Part I Teacher of the Year Application (webinar): This one-hour webinar will dive more deeply into the components of the part I Teacher of the Year application.
• Guidebook for Applicants: Coming Soon This document contains tips and tricks for how to improve your Tennessee Teacher of the Year application. While referencing this document will not guarantee a successful outcome in the selection process, this document is useful for refining your responses to ensure they align to the application prompts.
• Part I Application PDF: This document contains all questions listed in the electronic application. Schools and districts are encouraged to use this document as a foundation for their own school- and district-level Teacher of the Year applications. Applicants are encouraged to use this document to draft and revise application responses prior to submitting via the online form.
• Part II Application PDF: Coming Soon  This document contains all questions listed in the electronic application. Schools and districts are encouraged to use this document as a foundation for their own school- and district-level Teacher of the Year applications. Applicants are encouraged to use this document to draft and revise application responses prior to submitting via the online form.