NJDOE Announces 2019-2020 County Teachers of the Year

The New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) last month announced 21 teachers as the 2019-2020 County Teachers of the Year during an awards ceremony at Liberty High School in Jackson.

“It is with great pride that I recognize these highly skilled, compassionate and dedicated County Teachers of the Year,” said Gov. Phil Murphy. “These teachers reflect the exemplary quality of educational leadership that we see throughout our state.”

“New Jersey’s educators are among the best in this country, as evidenced by the success of our students,” said Education Commissioner Lamont O. Repollet. “The teachers who we recognize today instruct, inform, and inspire children to achieve success in school and beyond.”

The Governor’s Educator of the Year Program promotes a positive school culture by acknowledging the hard work and dedication of outstanding teachers. Individual schools are encouraged to nominate exceptional educators with diverse backgrounds to ensure that the honorees represent the ethnic/racial diversity of New Jersey. As an added incentive to participate this year, the New Jersey School Boards Association made it possible for over 2,400 educators who were named as their local school’s educator of the year to receive free virtual educational resources that will benefit their students. Resources included ideas on how to incorporate music into classroom instruction, best practices for teaching African American history and how to deal with in-school bullying.

The County Teachers of the Year will network with educators throughout the state and serve as ambassadors for New Jersey’s public schools. Additional information can be found on the Governor’s Educator of the Year webpage.

A panel of educators then will select the New Jersey State Teacher of the Year based on written applications, video submissions, and interviews with the top six finalists.

The State Teacher of the Year is expected to be announced at the State Board of Education’s October meeting and will go on to represent New Jersey in competing for the title of National Teacher of the Year.

New Jersey’s 2019-2020 County Teachers of the Year are as follows: