Two Putnam County educators named state finalists for the Tennessee Department of Education’s Principal and Teacher of the Year awards.
Burks Elementary School Principal Heather Tinch and Northeast Elementary School physical education teacher Jared Zachary selected to represent the Upper Cumberland region. Director Of Schools Corby King said both finalists serve as examples of the qualities the district looks for in its educators.recognition program.
“They’ve had to go through a couple of steps,” King said, “They’ve also gone through a region process to be selected to represent the Upper Cumberland. And now to be recognized as state finalists is truly rewarding for both the teacher, Mr. Zachary, and for the principal, Ms. Tinch. It’s just a remarkable accomplishment for them.”
King said Zachary creates a team atmosphere in his gym classes through activities designed to help students grow physically and mentally. King said Tinch has established an inviting environment at her school in Monterey that makes faculty and students want to be there.
“I they both love students,” King said. “They absolutely love their students, the people they work with. You know, talking to Mr. Zachary, his kids come in the gym, they have a blast every day. He does he plans fun activities, has things for them to help them grow physically, but also mentally and just working together and creating a team atmosphere. Ms. Tinch does the same thing with her faculty. She loves the faculty, the staff, the students, and the families there in Monterey and at Burks Elementary. She creates a warm, inviting atmosphere for them. And it’s just a place where people want to be. They want to work with her. She has an infectious attitude. People want to be around her. And it’s just a fun place to be. You know, for both Mr. Zachary and Ms. Tench, they’re just good people. And we’re really excited about this recognition they’re receiving.”
King said the teaching profession requires a servant’s heart to inspire students to achieve.
“Oh, we absolutely believe that way, feel that way,” King said. “You have to have a servant’s heart. It is a it is a true calling to work with and serve others, and to take whatever they bring to you every day and to turn those things into positive and inspire them, engage them, wanting to learn more, and wanting them to achieve and do better. It is a calling. And I think both Mr. Zachary and Ms. Tinch are great examples of what we want in our educators and what we, you know, want others to be for our students.”
King said having both a teacher and a principal nomination in the same year is a rare achievement within the 14-county region. King said the recognition reflects the overall quality of the staff working throughout the school system.
“It’s the entire system working together, again,” King said. “We’ve had a good track record the last few years of success. It’s because of our people. We talk about that often. We don’t get the results we do academically, or our students don’t get the recognition and the achievements they get if they don’t have good mentors, good leaders, good people preparing them. And we have outstanding educators in our school system. And this is just an example of the type people we have working for us.”
King said the educators were surprised by the awards because they view their work as simply doing their jobs. King said the primary motivation for the district remains providing opportunities for students to improve from the time they walk into a classroom until they leave.
“You know, it’s always been important to have good, strong educators leading our school systems because our students are the future of our communities,” King said. “They’re vital to the success of the community and our workforce. And we have to have good people who are preparing them preparing our students and getting them ready to move out into the world. And that’s always been vitally important, and I and I would say even more so today than ever, just because the job’s changing, the world’s changing, things around us are changing, and we need good people getting our students ready for the next step in life.”
King said the final results for the state awards will be announced in December.
