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Worldwide adventures in learning await eight Chesterfield County teachers who were named 2022 R.E.B. Awards for Teaching Excellence winners and will receive a total of $107,000 in professional development grants from the Community Foundation and the R.E.B. Foundation. The annual program recognizes excellence in public education by awarding cash grants to outstanding public school teachers from Chesterfield, Richmond, Henrico and Hanover and the Department of Juvenile Justice in those localities.
“The R.E.B. awards make a big difference each year. While rewarding our extraordinary teachers for their exceptional work, the grants also create even more remarkable learning environments in our classrooms,” said Dr. Merv Daugherty, superintendent of Chesterfield County Public Schools. “We are so appreciative of the parents, colleagues and community partners who nominated our teachers because they saw their dedication and passion for engaging and immersing their students in learning.”
These Chesterfield County teachers won 2022 R.E.B. Awards for Teaching Excellence:
Kara Barton of Old Hundred Elementary won $14,500 to cultivate wonder, support student inquiry and provide multiple means of expression while developing early literacy skills by visiting Reggio-inspired classrooms in the United States and abroad.
Kimberly Bliley of Bird High won $14,000 to understand how students with intellectual disabilities are supported by New Zealand’s Disability Strategy by learning its application in education and employment and participate in an inclusive and non-disabling society.
Jennifer Deckert of Chesterfield Virtual School won $12,500 to explore building community, kindness and compassion in the classrooms of Denmark, which established mandatory empathy classes for all students and is known as the second happiest country in the world.
Sam Leone of Cosby High won $15,000 to travel North America and Europe exploring diverse engineering applications including architecture, roller-coasters, sporting equipment, motor sports and fine woodworking to enhance knowledge of engineering and manufacturing processes.
Shelley Loker of Gates Elementary won $11,000 to implement play-based learning into the kindergarten classroom by exploring classrooms in London and Oxford, England, and by attending a play-based early education conference in Miami.
Victoria Parent of Monacan High won $15,000 to study indigenous and colonial history of the Philippines, deepen understanding of Asian American Pacific Islander identity, explore generational immigrant experiences and increase AAPI voices in English curriculum.
Nicole Stonestreet of Manchester High won $15,000 to study the development and evolution of democracy as it followed various trade routes through Greece, Italy and Croatia around the Adriatic Sea.
Julia West of Providence Middle won $10,000 to collaborate with English as a Second Language teachers across the country; participate in a Spanish immersion program in Costa Rica; and attend a TESOL conference.
In addition to the eight teachers named as R.E.B. winners, three Chesterfield County Public Schools teachers were recognized as finalists and received a $1,000 grant in recognition of their achievements in the classroom: Heather Andre of Cosby High, Erin Murtagh of Monacan High and Kimberley Raimist of Bird High.