For many years, the teachers at Northern High School have survived off of little
appreciation.
Debra Wyatt, business teacher, was one of the first two teachers honored by the Student Advisory Council as Teacher of the Month at Northern High School. (Photo courtesy of the Round Table)
While an occasional free box of tissues is nice, it is not enough. The teacher of the month award has given life back to Northern’s faculty.
“[The award] is fantastic because teachers have such an important
job, but the best part about that award is that it is student-led, and the entire process is student-driven,” assistant principal Matthew Hunt said.
“So that has a lot more power, and I believe that the teachers really appreciate it because it comes from the most important people in the building,” Hunt said.
Members of the Student Advisory Council choose the teacher of the month and give the award out at the monthly faculty meeting.
“There’s a lot of nervous tension in the room, and we are all making bets on who gets the award,” science teacher Josh Roberts said.
“It is a lot of fun,” he said. “Everyone wants it, and it is fun to see who gets it. It’s also kind of a competition between departments to see which department gets the most awards.”
The award spices up the otherwise boring faculty meeting.
“In my opinion, that five minutes at the faculty meeting is by far the
best part of the whole meeting,” Hunt said.
English teacher Sean Mournighan is one of the first two teachers of the month honored at Northern High School. (Photo courtesy of The Round Table)
The award gives hope to teachers that not every student dislikes them.
“We get to recognize student of the month, so I think its really cool
that teachers finally get to feel appreciated,” social studies teacher Megan Bendson said.
“So often, we feel like nobody appreciates what we are doing: the kids yell at us and treat a lot of teachers pretty badly, so it is a really nice way to feel like ‘okay, not every student hates what we’re doing.’”
The award also gives teachers a reason to be the best they can be.
“Teacher of the month is a good way to show appreciation to the teachers,” sophomore Jesus Ayala said. “It makes teachers feel like they are actually being rewarded for the things they do, and it makes them want to try harder to make their students happy and have students enjoy their classes.”
Teachers are grateful for even the slightest bit of appreciation.
“Teachers get thanked in very few ways,” English teacher Sean Mournighan said.
“They don’t get thanked in the media, they don’t get thanked typically by politicians, they don’t get thanked by their paychecks,” he said.
“So thanking them in any small way is always a good feeling.”
By Kelsey Kirwan
Staff Writer
The Round Table
Northern High School