Was your favorite teacher recognized as a Tennessee Lottery Educator of the Week in your hometown? Then vote for him or her to be honored as the statewide Educator of the Month! Just click on the photo below to cast your vote. And come back often – you can vote once every day!
April Educator of the Month
Liakita Darnell
Northeast Middle
What do you like most about teaching?
Exploring literature and history, and also building relationships with my youth.
Savannah Johnson
Bradford Elementary
Watching students learn new things and getting to know them as people.
Michelle Isaacs
Hermitage Elementary School
The thing that I love the most about teaching is helping my children foster a love for reading.
Natalie Gideon
Big Ridge Elementary
I enjoy seeing the students grow into future leaders. I also enjoy their hugs, the "I love you" and "you're the best" comments!
Amanda Lafferty
Normal Park Museum Magnet
Teaching gives me an opportunity to build relationships with students and help them feel noticed and valued.
Hannah Potter
Jonesborough Elementary
The opportunity to love these kids while they are in the building and in my classroom I get to show them how much I care and that I want them to be successful.
Mary Enoch
Bartlett Elementary
I love seeing the kids grow, but more importantly, I want them to know how much I love them.
Tracey Forester
East Hardin Elementary
Helping students learn how to read. I love when they realize that they have unlocked a whole world full of pages that they can read.
Nina Waugaman
William H. Brewster Elementary
I love watching students get instant gratification when they master a concept.
Leah Henley
West Creek High School
Building positive relationships with my students. I love inspiring them to be critical readers, deep thinkers, and (most importantly) good humans.
Lindsey Shults
Parrottsville Elementary
Teaching is very rewarding. I love witnessing my students succeed. Cultivating a passion for education and fostering a thirst for knowledge is a privilege.
Alisha Bright
Park View Elementary
I love to build relationships with my students so they know and truly believe that I am their proudest supporter of all their learning and successes!
Luke Wade
Rogersville Middle School
I love when a kid tells me he doesn't like to read because I can ask what are your interests? Once I find out those interests I have a book for them.
Shantwania Chaney
East Elementary
The students. Just seeing them learning and growing, it's so rewarding.
Dr. Tina Atkinson
Percy Priest Elementary
Art education isn't about students making cute projects; it's about growing confident and innovative thinkers who will create a more beautiful world with their creativity.
Adelia Hall
Oak Grove Elementary
I love seeing how they process and understand what we are learning. I want my classroom to be a loving and supportive space for all of us to grow and be our best.
Lisa Wilson
Central Elementary School
I really enjoy being around kids and helping them get those light bulb moments. Like, aha! I finally got it!
Brenda Woods
Bargerton Elem.
I love working with the children and seeing the 'Aha!' moments when they catch on to something.
Aaron Lockhart
Tennessee School for the Blind
The joy of learning. Before I became an administrator, I was a teacher, and before that, a Soldier in the US military. All pure joy.
Kylee Johnson
Stone Memorial High School
While teaching a subject I am passionate about, I get to form lifelong relationships with my students.
Trevor Fuller
Soddy Daisy High School
The thing I like most about teaching is the relationships I build with my students, and it’s a joy to see what that become once they’re out in the world.
Sara Sparks
Love Chapel Elementary School
You can see a light bulb moment happen in first grade when something finally clicks for them Its' just kind of magical. They get so excited when they learn something new.
LaTonja Thompson
Vollentine Elementary School
I love making everyday count with young scholars.
Marshall Lloyd
Ellendale Elementary School
I love watching students get the thrill out of learning.