The 2018 St. Vrain Valley School District Educator of the year was nominated by several people, including a parent who wrote, “Some P.E. teachers can make their classroom about sports or running laps…however, this teacher brings humor, patience, and consistency to his classroom. He has an innovative approach about health and exercise. When learning about the heart, students walk into the gym to find Heart City, a room set-up with mats, stations, and heart rate monitors. Students become cells and travel through arteries and veins! He makes learning FUN! He is the type of teacher my children will ALWAYS remember when they look back at their elementary years, and, perhaps, as adults enjoy exercise! A colleague wrote, “This teacher is the heart of Longmont Estates! Every Tuesday and Thursday, for about an hour before schools starts, you can find this teacher with his 100 mile club with over 30% of our schools students participating. He works to integrate a variety of subjects in his work including using scanning technology with his 100 mile club, to mark how many laps/miles each student completes. For Pi Day, he had students enter the gym and run/walk for 3.14 minutes, and then explain the significance of that number. He finds ways to keep kids engaged and learning, no matter what the topic.” Mike’s principal wrote, “He took on a new challenge of teaching adaptive PE to students in our autism center school programs. I love observing him teaching our students with autism. It is MAGICAL. He is so kind to the students and what he has been able to get them to do is remarkable. He has done a great job of adapting activities for these students. He cannot hide the fact that he loves these kids. The classroom is filled with smiles, but the biggest smile is Mike’s!” For the last 14 years, Teacher Mike Newell has brought energy and enthusiasm to St. Vrain Valley Schools including Mead Middle School, where he taught 6th, 7th, and 8th graders; and for the past 7 years, Mike has taught at Longmont Estates Elementary. Mike is a proud graduate of Colorado State University where he played for the RAMS football team, and then continued his football career playing professionally for 5 years with the Green Bay Packers, Saint Louis Rams and Houston Texans. Mike credits his grandmother, who was a teacher in Rock River, Wyoming and Cherry Creek High School, as his inspiration to become a teacher and states, “What I like most about teaching is the ability to have an impact on children. Not only teaching them physical education skills but life skills and character building as well. Everyday has its twists and turns with no two alike, it keeps my brain healthy and active!” Mike’s Principal, Traci Haley, states, “It is hard to put into words the impact Mike makes. I have been in education for 20 years…, been in hundreds of classrooms and I can confidently say that Mr. Newell represents the best of St. Vrain Valley Schools. He makes a difference in the lives of children and on the adults that get the honor of working with him.
The 2017 St. Vrain Valley School District Teacher of the year was nominated by several parents of students and former students, a colleague and a principal. This is what they had to say: “This teacher is a one in a million teacher. My son will forever benefit from having him as his teacher. My son learned and was encouraged to think critically about literature, how to write creative stories, how to dissect materials and really analyze them and become a deeper thinker. He relates stories to me weekly about history, language arts and science facts he learned from Mr. Garcia, last year! My son had visual convergence issues and this teacher challenged him and us to raise the bar of expectations. This teacher knew our son could perform and learn at a very high level and then enabled our son to so achieve. He nurtures every child, invests himself in each student and tries his best to ensure that each one gets what he or she needs to grow as an individual into a positive and wonderful citizen.” Another parent writes, “I am a parent who enjoys seeing our daughter turn from a good reader who we had to entice to read to one who is a voracious reader because of the fire lit by this teacher.” She adds, “Our daughter has always been an artistic child, now she is a prolific writer of poetry, stories, and journaling and blogging because she has been exposed to this teacher’s teaching style, passion for his work and love for his students. He is constantly encouraging and challenging his students to be the best students they each can be, the best Coloradoans and the best partners in learning as they collaborate on lessons such as ramp and bridge projects to incorporate engineering and technology in his teaching. He updates us weekly by e-mail and on the class website about spelling, math and writing requirements and assignments. His excitement for learning is contagious and embraced by his students. He is kind, generous, humble and full of grace.” His colleague writes “this teacher exemplifies professionalism and passion for teaching every hour of every day. I have worked with him for twelve years and he inspires me to be a better teacher. Sharing ideas, working through challenges, mentoring teachers new and experienced, this teacher maintains a wonderful sense of humor. His passion for writing is shared by every student to have passed through his classes.” His principal tells of an individual who is repeatedly referred to by those in the community as “the best teacher I’ve ever had.” He is honored and revered by all in his community for he loves teaching his students. In an age of communicating in 140 characters or less, this teacher loves writing and helping his students share his love for writing. A published author, he seeks feedback from his students and learns from them! This teacher has been teaching children for decades. Already well accomplished, he could rest on his laurels, depend on ideas and strategies from his wealth of experience. Not this teacher! Whether it is use of technology or his many Schoology seminars for staff members, this teacher is at the top of his game — his craft and his calling. The principal states, “Recently I toured a mother and father through the classrooms, showing them all the wonderful things we have to offer. As we entered this teacher’s classroom the mother was brought to tears at the sight of this teacher. As he wrapped her in a huge hug, the principal could hear the mother tell this teacher what an impact he had on her life, when the mother was his student. For over forty years this teacher has worked in the same school and for forty years, according to our superintendent, he has always asked of himself, “What more can I do to help this student, to reach this child, to support this family?” An example for all who teach and educate children, our St. Vrain Valley School District 2017 Teacher of the year is Erie Elementary 4th grade teacher Mr. Charlie Garcia, known far and wide as Gar.