teaching alumni

May 21, 2020

Wake County’s Diane Kent-Parker First-Year Teacher of the Year Brianna Barbour ‘19 Recognized for Instilling Students With Sense of Purpose

The speech, by Latin American civil rights activist Cesar Chavez, was long, about 12 pages. Brianna Barbour ‘19 knew it was a lot for her Apex Friendship Middle School students,… 

Apr 13, 2020

Wake County’s Diane Kent-Parker First-Year Teacher of the Year Rachel Giddings ‘19: ‘When You See a Light Bulb Go Off for a Student, a Fire is Ignited to Continue Doing What You do Best’

Rachel Giddings ‘19 always admired how passionate her mom, a pre-K special education teacher, was about her job, which inspired her to pursue a career in elementary education. She is now a first grade teacher at Forestville Road Elementary School. And one of the Wake County Public School System’s 2019-20 Diane Kent-Parker First-Year Teacher of the Year award winners. 

Apr 10, 2020

N.C. Council for the Social Studies Teacher of the Year Marlin Jones ‘20MED: ‘My Love of Learning and My Desire to Help Others Inspired Me to Become a Teacher’

When Marlin Jones ‘20MED was a freshman in college, he changed his major from engineering to history education and never looked back. Now an AP World History and American History 2 Teacher, Jones has been named the 2019-20 N.C. Council for the Social Studies Teacher of the Year. 

May 31, 2019

Lindsey Evans ’09 Celebrated as 2019-2020 Wake County Teacher of the Year

Lindsey Evans '09, an eighth-grade social studies teacher at Apex Friendship Middle School, was greeted with a school-wide celebration May 10 after being named the 2019-2020 Wake County Teacher of the Year. 

Apr 29, 2019

Cristina Chase Lane ’18 on the Importance of Relationship Building

Christina Chase Lane's ability to adapt her classroom to build community beyond her lesson plans is what caught the attention of her principal, Catherine Yanello, who nominated Lane for Wake County Public School System’s 2018-19 Diane Kent-Parker First-Year Teacher Award. 

Apr 29, 2019

David Ayers ’99EDD on Refining Community through Leadership

David Ayers ’99EDD recently received the Senior Scholar Award for his research on community colleges from the Council for the Study of Community Colleges. But his work really began as a child exploring the campus of Surry Community College where his father worked. 

Apr 29, 2019

Lance Atkinson ’18MAT on His First Year in the Classroom

In his first year of teaching social studies at Clayton High School, Lance Atkinson '18MAT said being able to adapt to change was one of the most important traits he brought to the classroom. Perhaps that trait is one of the reasons Johnston County Public Schools named him its 2019 Outstanding First-Year Teacher. 

May 16, 2018

NPR: Now It’s North Carolina Teachers’ Turn: How Did We Get Here? What’s Next?

About the March For Students and Rally For Respect, Assistant Dean Michael Maher tells NPR: "It comes down to priorities, right? How we want to invest in education going forward? What do we really want to invest in in this state? How can we make the best possible decisions? And I think that is also one of these things that's getting lost in kind of the back and forth is that this isn't only about teachers. It's about kids."