Mitchell, Kennedy named Hamilton’s TOY, SREOY

Published 1:00 pm Saturday, December 28, 2019

“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.”

― William Arthur Ward

JASPER — The top teacher and school district employee have been named by the Hamilton County School District.

The district’s 2021 Teacher of the Year was recently awarded to Ryan Mitchell, an instructional coach at Hamilton County High School, while Alli Kennedy was named the district’s 2020 School Related Employee of the Year. Kennedy is the administrative secretary at Hamilton County Elementary School.

Mitchell has been employed with Hamilton County Schools since 2018. Mitchell’s job consists of assisting the high school and middle school teachers with instructional modeling, lessons and planning, and demonstrating various methods of teaching as well as monitors the progress within the schools.

“I am extremely humbled and honored to represent the amazing educators of Hamilton County,” Mitchell said. “This award would not be possible were it not for the support of my family and friends. I am so grateful for the many relationships with my peers in education in Hamilton County and across the entire state who have made me the educator I am today. I am a product of our great system.

“Most importantly, I am thankful for the students I have had the pleasure of serving. If they learned half as much from me as I did from them, I would be ecstatic. I look forward to continuing to serve a new generation of our future leaders and experts! Thank you all! How ‘bout them Trojans!”

Kennedy has been employed with Hamilton County Schools since 2018. Kennedy’s job consists of providing clerical and administrative support to the principal, vice principal and teaching staff as required, while ensuring the school’s operation is consistently organized throughout each week.