Teacher+of+the+Year

[|Nomination Procedure] Report of the 2010 TOY: Following the timeline set out in the binder, I did the following:

At the 2010 Spring Conference at Westmoore, I set up a display table about the Teacher of the Year. On it, I placed a large trifold board with the names of all past winners and the explanation of the TOY process. On the table, I placed slips of paper with the nomination process explained. I also put out nomination forms. There was a bucket of candy, with instructions on where to place nominations. I received one nomination, which was for Kris, from Elise. At the luncheon, I announced that nominations were now being taken.

After the conference, I sent Deanna an email to send to all our paid members, explaining the nomination process, and asking for nominations, with a deadline of the last Friday in May. I received one additional nomination. The nominee declined to accept it.

I sent another request for nominations in the summer, and received one more nomination. I determined the nominee was ineligible due to being a board member. The first week of September, I created a ballot for voting. I received ballots from 41 members. The third week of September, I notified Kris of her award. The day after the conference, I sent a press release to the papers in OKC, Tulsa, and Ada with a picture.

Additional:

In August, I began contacting local companies that I do business with, to see if they would sponsor our teacher of the year award with a gift. I did not get a positive response, usually being referred to an application process. Taco Mayo offered a coupon booklet, and Tan 'n Tone America offered a free month's membership, but I did not obtain those, thinking those business would not be located in Ada. I contacted the Chamber of Commerce in Ada, but got no response. I called the State Chamber of Commerce, and went through a series of individuals who had no way of helping me find businesses that dealt with international customers. I really thought that businesses in Oklahoma who had international dealings would be interested, but I didn't get anywhere with them. Probably ethnic restaurants are the most likely to give a gift card or something. I even tried getting Thunder tickets and Redhawks tickets, but no success. I do have the name and phone number of someone at the State Chamber of Commerce who might be a good contact. I met his friend at the Global Competence summit.

In my opinion, the teacher of the year award is well-positioned to raise the profile of world language teachers in our state, but it is going to take all of us reaching out for speaking dates and publicity and support from the business community.