Three teachers nominated for excellence

Three teachers with Pembina Hills School Division have been recognized for going above and beyond the call of duty.

Raime Drake of Eleanor Hall, Sue Rees of the Alberta Distance Learning Centre, and Shelley Witwer of Swan Hills were all nominated for Excellence in Teaching awards. PHRD Deputy Superintendent of Education Colleen Symyrozum-Watt said the board works hard to ensure it is improving learning for its students, and these three teachers are at the heart of that mission.

“If we want to improve learning, then we have to improve the teaching,” she said. “The work of these three individuals does not end at 3:30 p.m. when the kids go home. We just really want to recognize what each of you do for your kids, for your community, for the parents and for the district.”

Nominations for this award don’t necessarily have to come from other teachers, Symyrozum-Watt said. Nominations can come from parents or community members. It is a rigorous nomination form, so to even be nominated should be viewed as an honour, she added.

Witwer has been with PHRD for several years, and is currently teaching in the upper elementary grades.

Brian Richardson is the principal at Swan Hills. He said Witwer has been a teacher who has been adaptable and flexible when it comes to taking on school initiatives.

“This year, Shelley is teaching grades 4, 5 and 6,” he said. “A lot of teachers might be intimidated by that, but Shelley just jumped right in there and took on the task. She is not only an incredible teacher; she’s also a mentor to other staff members. She is one of the leaders and has helped our younger staff members with their lesson plans, and has provided a shoulder for those teachers when they needed someone to lean on. Her teaching is in the top one per cent of teachers in this district. We love having her with us.”

Rees has been in the district for many years, and she has been involved with many different schools. Symyrozum-Watt said she first met Rees as a teacher at Dunstable School. She then spent time at Fort Assiniboine School, then with AISI, and she is now working with ADLC. “Sue is a success maker, and she has worked with a number of kids,” Symyrozum-Watt said. “I can’t imagine how many lives she has touched, and how many lives she will continue to touch.”

ADLC principal Cam Oulton said Rees is a person who has continually reinvented herself. Over the past few years, she has been a key player and success maker in the academy of reading. He relayed a personal story to PHRD trustees involving Rees’ involvement with improving the learning skills of his own niece. It was Rees who identified a central auditory processing disorder. After seeing an audiologist, Rees’ suspicions were confirmed.

“We now have a girl who is successful, who is a reader and who believes in herself,” Oulton said. “There are hundreds of other stories like this where Sue has made a difference, and I’m delighted she has been nominated. I was so pleased to find Sue at ADLC when I got there, because I know she has a massive passion for working with children.”

Drake began her career with PHRD at about the same time as Witwer, and she is being nominated for this award at the same time. She has been with several schools within the division.

Symyrozum-Watt said the interesting thing about Drake is the scope in which she has taught. Drake has spent time at R.F. Staples and at Jarvie, and then went down to the elementary level in Vimy. She then went to an even lower grade level at Clyde. This has broadened her experience from junior high school to Grade 1. She is also teaching junior high band, and is currently pursuing her master’s degree as part of PHRD’s leadership group.

“Quite often, these excellent teachers are hunted for leadership positions,” Symyrozum-Watt said.

Don Hinks is principal at Eleanor Hall. He said Drake is in the top one per cent of teachers in the province, perhaps even Canada.

“If I could be any teacher in the world, I would want to be Raime Drake. She’s really that good,” he said. “She is the master of all trades, because she has been there and done it all. We had a parent council that really wanted to have French brought into the school, and Raime did that, too. She’s my acting administrator when I’m away. She really knows her students well, and she knows the community. She has a big heart, and I’m so happy she’s at my school.”

Symyrozum-Watt encouraged them all to continue to grow.

“The sky is the limit, and there’s no prouder profession than what you are doing right now.”