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Photo by Jeff Thompson.
Shelby chamber recognizes students
College Track Student of the Year nominees: Margaret Hayes, Oak Mountain High School; recipient Tahireh Markert, Indian Springs School; Melissa Mathews, Briarwood Christian School; and Maeghan Steelreath, Chelsea High School.
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Photos by Jeff Thompson.
Chamber TOY winners
2013-2014 Greater Shelby Chamber of Commerce Students and Educators of the Year are, from left: College Track Student of the Year Tahireh Markert, Indian Springs School; Career Track Student of the Year Elizabeth Frederick, Montevallo High School; Elementary Educator of the Year Kelly Hill, Inverness Elementary School; and Secondary Educator of the Year Jodie Ferguson, Oak Mountain High School.
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Photo by Jeff Thompson.
Chamber track student of the year
Career Track Student of the Year nominee Noah Gregson, Oak Mountain High School.
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Photo by Jeff Thompson.
Chamber elementary TOY winners
Elementary Educator of the Year nominees: recipient Kelly Hill, Inverness Elementary School; and Laura Wolfe, Oak Mountain Intermediate School. Not pictured: Kathryn Brekle, Mt Laurel Elementary School.
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Photo by Jeff Thompson.
Chamber secondary teachers
Secondary Educator of the Year nominees: Ray Haley, Chelsea Middle School; Lisa Balazs, Indian Springs School; Jennifer Bailey, Chelsea High School; and recipient Jodie Ferguson, Oak Mountain High School.
In April, the Greater Shelby Chamber of Commerce celebrated excellence in the classroom by recognizing more than 50 students and teachers in its inaugural Students and Educators of the year event.
The Student and Educator of the Year program is one of two parts of the Chamber’s Shelby One campaign on Workforce Development organized by the Education Workgroup. The other is the Keeping it Real program, which educates ninth-grade students on the current cost of living.
The Chamber completed its first full year of the Keeping It Real program in April. Since August 2013, staff and volunteers visited 10 schools and 2,627 students in the county.
“The feedback we received from the students also shows that we achieved our dual goals of getting them to start thinking about their future and sharing a slice of reality when it comes to what things cost,” said Keyla Handley, the Chamber’s director of community and workforce development, said in a release.
The Chamber has already started working on improvements for next year’s Keeping It Real program and launching its career awareness fair program for all 10th-grade students throughout Shelby County.
“To you students and educators, you’ve truly made us from the business side of this partnership realize that the best is yet to come for Shelby County,” Chamber president and CEO Kirk Mancer said.
Three of the four selected as 2013-2014 Students and Teachers of the year attend or teach at schools on the U.S. 280 corridor.
Elementary Educator of the Year: Kelly Hill, Inverness Elementary School
Secondary Educator of the Year: Jodie Ferguson, Oak Mountain High School
College Track Student of the Year: Tahireh Markert, Indian Springs School
Career Track Student of the Year: Elizabeth Frederick, Montevallo High School
Students selected for the award each received a $750 scholarship. Teachers also received a $750 award for use in their classrooms. The awards were sponsored by America’s First Federal Credit Union.
“It’s a lot to think about,” Hill said. “I’ll probably use it for more books or technology.”
280-area nominees for Student and Teacher of the Year were:
Career Track Student
Noah Gregson, Oak Mountain High School
College Track Students
Margaret Hayes, Oak Mountain High School
Melissa Mathews, Briarwood Christian School
Maeghan Steelreath, Chelsea High School
Elementary Educators
Kathryn Brekle, Mt Laurel Elementary School
Laura Wolfe, Oak Mountain Intermediate School
Secondary Educators
Jennifer Bailey, Chelsea High School
Lisa Balazs, Indian Springs School
Ray Haley, Chelsea Middle School
For more, visit shelbychamber.org.
