Renton's Ahead Of The Class Award Winners Get Surprise Recognition

The tenth annual —the program honoring the crème da la crème of teachers in Renton—is just a few short weeks away. Today the winners of the award were announced, after the teachers were surprised in their classrooms, by a team from the , including Superintendent Mary Alice Heuschel, Board Member Pam Teal, and members of the Chamber of Commerce.

Seattle Seahawks mascot, Blitz, delighted the kids and teachers by attending the festive “prize patrol” like ceremony in each classroom. The Seahawks are the major sponsor for the event held on April 12 this year at the

Five teachers received the surprise announcement today.

This year’s class included two teachers from Lakeridge Elementary School (a kindergarten teacher and a fourth grade teacher), another fourth grade teacher from , a P.E. teacher specializing in Leadership at Renton High, and a Middle School language arts teacher from Dimmitt Middle School.

The teachers that win Ahead of the Class Awards are nominated by a member of the community, a parent, a peer, or even students. The teacher then must submit an in-depth application describing their teaching philosophy and accomplishments. The application is then rated by a committee, who puts forward the top vote getters.

The last stage of the process is for the teachers to interview with a team from the community, chamber and district.

The winners for 2011 are:

Kim Menon, is a kindergarten teacher from Lakeridge Elementary School and a nationally board certified teacher. She was nominated by a colleague who pronounced her a magnificent educator. The nominator said, “Students respond positively to her high expectations for their academic growth and behavior.” She has been teaching for nine years.

Lynn Simpson, is Menon’s colleague at Lakeridge, and teaches fourth grade. She has been teaching for three years, but served nine years prior as a paraeducator.

Simpson was also nominated by a colleague, who said, “Lynn is passionate about her students and their success,” and praised the fact that she went back to school to earn her teaching degree, and her student-centered classroom.

The committee also named first-year teacher, Adam Swinney, an eighth-grade Language Arts teacher at Dimmitt Middle School. Swinney was nominated by a previous Ahead of the Class winner, who applauds his ability to encourage students to become better writers and expressive of their creativity. He is actively engaged in after-school programs and assemblies, and exhibits a great amount of energy and enthusiasm to his peers.

Sara Olson teaches P.E./leadership at , and had the distinction of being nominated by a student who pronounces her the “hardest working teacher.” A Central Washington graduate, Olson has been teaching P.E. for four years, and leadership for two years.

Kilty Keaton, a fourth-grade teacher from , who has been teaching for three and a half years, was nominated by a parent. The parent said, in the nomination, “She is young with fresh ideas and yet, she still has some of the traditional characteristics of the teachers we grew up with. My son is happy to go to school every day and enjoys being in Ms. Keaton's class.”

The look on the teacher’s faces as they received the surprise news today was priceless, Teal said.

The award ceremony, where the teachers will receive a $500 award and the community recognition, will be held on April 12 at 7 p.m. It is free to the public and will be emceed by Tony Ventrella from the Seahawks. Organizers of the ceremony, including Teal, expect that many of previous year’s winners will attend the event in recognition of the tenth anniversary.