Remember Heidi Welch ’96, New Hampshire’s Teacher of the Year? Well, the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) has selected her as one of the four finalists for the 2013 National Teacher of the Year (NTOY). This prestigious program allows teachers from across the country to collaborate with policy makers at every level and advocate on behalf of the teaching profession.
For the past 14 years, Heidi has been teaching a variety of music courses, including band and chorus, at Hillsboro-Deering High School. If she’s chosen NTOY, she’ll be taking a year off from her classroom duties to travel nationally and internationally as a spokesperson and advocate for the teaching profession. NTOYs are frequently requested to sit on national and state commissions and policy advising bodies, and sometimes to represent American educators to audiences in other nations.
“I see greatness in classrooms every day that go overlooked, but with this finalist position, I hope to be a positive representation of the great teachers that I have studied under and work with, as well as the other incredible teachers here in NH,” Heidi said. “I am deeply honored to represent my state of NH and look forward to giving my best as a national finalist! My greatest hope is that students understand that you can come from anything, and still make a huge difference in the lives of others and become successful doing a job that you truly love. I am Claremont, I am Manchester, I am Keene, I am most definitely Hillsboro, and I will always be New Hampshire born and bred. I love my State and hope that at the national level I am able to show them exactly what our little state is all about.”
The final selection of Teacher of the Year will be announced in April 2013. Keep your fingers crossed!