Teachers from 15 of Maine’s counties, Ashley Reynolds, who teaches at Captain Albert Stevens School, Belfast, and Tom Gray, who teaches at Camden Hills Regional High School, were honored May 9 in Maine’s State Capitol at an annual event in the Hall of Flags announcing the 2019 Maine County Teachers of the Year.

The group is the county finalists for Maine Teacher of the Year, an honor awarded each year to one teacher in Maine.

Commissioner of Education Pender Makin said in a news release: “The MTOY program offers all of us the opportunity to celebrate the phenomenal work that is being accomplished every day in Maine’s public schools. Each of the County Teachers of the Year exemplifies a deep commitment to Maine’s students and a belief in the power of education to create positive and lasting change. They bring their compassion, creativity, and innovation to the art and science of teaching, amplifying the dreams and futures of their students.  In highlighting the accomplishments of these 15 educators, we are also honoring all of Maine’s teachers,  and the outstanding talents and dedication they bring to their classrooms and communities.”

The educators were each nominated by a member of their community for their exemplary service in education, and dedication to their students. They were selected by a distinguished panel of teachers, principals and business community members from a pool of hundreds of other nominated teachers in their communities.

2019 County Teachers of the Year: 

• Androscoggin County: Shawn Rice, Edward Little High School, Auburn 
• Aroostook County: Kim Barnes, Caribou Middle School 
• Cumberland County: Heather Whitaker, Gorham Middle School 
• Franklin County: Robert Taylor, Spruce Mountain Middle/High School, Jay 
• Hancock County: Nell Herrmann, Blue Hill Consolidated School 
• Kennebec County: Emily Bowen, Hall-Dale Middle/High School, Farmingdale 
• Knox County: Thomas Gray, Camden Hills Regional High School 
• Oxford County: Linda Andrews, Buckfield Junior/Senior High School, Hartford -Sumner Elementary 
• Penobscot County: Tracy Deschaine, Orono Middle School 
• Piscataquis County: Bobbi Tardif, SeDoMoCha School, Dover-Foxcroft
• Sagadahoc County: Charles Bingham, Morse High School, Bath
• Somerset County: Katherine Bertini, Madison Junior High School
• Waldo County: Ashley Reynolds, Captain Albert Stevens School, Belfast 
• Washington County: Jeanna Carver, Jonesport Elementary School 
• York County: Ethel Atkinson, Bonny Eagle Middle School, Buxton 

*Lincoln County did not have a nominee who both met the criteria and completed the application process.

As ambassadors for teachers, students, and quality education in Maine, these teachers will continue to participate in the intensive State Teacher of the Year selection process, including the submission of a video showcasing their classroom instructional practices.

The field will be narrowed to eight semi-finalists who will begin working on their professional portfolio, a component of the National Teacher of the Year process. After the portfolio review and presentations to a select panel, the field is narrowed to three finalists. In October, the 2020 Maine Teacher of the Year will be selected after a school site visit and final interview. 

The Maine Teacher of the Year is a program of the Maine Department of Education. It is with gratitude from the Maine DOE that the program is   administered by Educate Maine, a business-led organization working to ensure Maine’s students and workers are the best educated and highly skilled in the world.