Carl Junction High School teacher Tobin Schultz finalist for Missouri Teacher of the Year

(From the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education)

Seven Missouri educators have been selected as finalists for the 2019 Missouri Teacher of the Year award:

Julie Ellis, Montgomery Co. R-II (English language arts, Montgomery Co. High School)
Amber Galiher, West Plains R-VII (kindergarten, West Plains Elementary)
Elizabeth Hart, Belton 124 (special education, Kentucky Trail Elementary)
Jean Lawson, Springfield R-XII (special education, Truman Elementary)
Rhett Oldham, Ste. Genevieve Co. R-II (history, Ste. Genevieve Middle School)
Shelly Parks, Francis Howell R-III (English, Francis Howell North High School)
Tobin Schultz, Carl Junction R-I (business/social studies/marketing, Carl Junction High School)

School districts throughout the state submitted nominations for the award, and a panel appointed by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) selected the finalists from among 32 regional teachers of the year, including Ruth Wydick, a teacher at Lamar West Elementary School.

A committee comprised of teachers, business leaders and education organization leaders will choose the Missouri Teacher of the Year following interviews with each finalist on August 21. The winner, finalists and Regional Teachers of the Year will be honored at a banquet in Jefferson City on October 22. The new Missouri Teacher of the Year will serve as the state’s nominee for the 2019 National Teacher of the Year.

The Missouri Teacher of the Year program recognizes the efforts of effective teachers in providing a quality education to their students. Beth Davey, a music teacher from Iveland Elementary (Ritenour), is the current Missouri Teacher of the Year.

DESE conducts the Missouri Teacher of the Year Program with financial support provided by the Boeing Company and the Monsanto Fund.

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Joplin Globe conservative columnist Geoff Caldwell has strong feelings about No Child Left Alive, my novel about a year at a dysfunctional high school:

It is, without a shadow of doubt, the absolute worst book I have ever read in my entire life.

Frequent Joplin Globe columnist Anson Burlingame also chimes in:

In my view the book is PURE TRASH!

However, there are also reviews from four people who know something about education:

After teaching for 35 years, I found this book to be one of the most accurate portrayals of the current state of high school education I have read.

Mr. Turner proves once again, he can get you reading and not want to stop. Interesting book - and the plot is well designed. You can tell he is a teacher - it shows in his depiction of the job. Excellent.

The author presents a parody of modern public schools, but as a teacher I know he describes what is very much based in reality. Don't let corporate takeover of school via testing ruin your child's education.

No Child Left Alive is obviously written by someone in education who understands the frustration caused by the emphasis on testing and the complicated politics that are often involved in any work setting, including schools.

No Child Left Alive is available locally at Always Buying Books and Changing Hands Book Shoppe in Joplin and Pat's Books in Carthage. It can be purchased in paperback and e-book formats at Amazon.com at the links below.