Front row: Shaun Phillips, Alex Sanger Preparatory School; Jordan Gusa; Zion Lutheran School; Adam Jochelson, Lakehill Preparatory School; Brittnay Connor, Geneva Heights Elementary School. Back row: Will Keffler, St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School; Steven Ramirez, Bryan Adams High School. Photo by Carol Hensley.
The Greater East Dallas Chamber of Commerce recognized six Teachers of the Year from local schools at a luncheon Tuesday.
Educators from public and private schools serving students in kindergarten through 12th grade were eligible for the awards. Each winning teacher received $250, and each of their schools also received $250.
Get to know this year’s Teachers of the Year.
Brittnay Connor, Geneva Heights IB World School
Connor focuses on student engagement as a math teacher at the Dallas ISD school. Instead of asking for “help,” which could make students feel like they’ve failed, students ask for support and stop by Connor’s desk. There are also opportunities for students with better understanding of concepts to teach students who need help.
Connor develops curriculum used by teachers across the state, and she is a member of the Teach Plus National Policy Team on social-emotional learning.
Shaun Phillips, Alex Sanger PreparatoryÂ
Phillips, who was teacher of the year at Sanger in the 2021-22 school year, is leading a committee working to build a garden at the school. He’s also over a mentoring club that focuses on African American students, checking in on their attendance, grades and mental health, and ensuring equality for them.
Steven Ramirez, Bryan Adams High School Leadership Academy
Ramirez is a graduate of Bryan Adams, where he serves as the director of orchestras and mariachi. He’s also the founding director of the school’s mariachi program. Under his leadership, the students qualified for and competed at the UIL State Mariachi Competition. Ramirez also coordinates with middle and elementary schools in the Bryan Adams Feeder Pattern, helping with recruiting, pedagogy, performances and curriculum.
Jordan Gusa, Zion Lutheran SchoolÂ
Gusa’s primary goal is to make sure students know they are cared for. At Zion, she helps with the vacation Bible school program and recently organized a donation drive to build nearly 250 “bye-bye bags” for Vogel Alcove.
For career day, she arranged for a care flight team to land a helicopter on the field for the whole school to see.
And she leads professional development sessions for other teachers at Zion, including a recent one on the effects of screen time on a child’s brain.
Will Keffler, St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic SchoolÂ
Keffler has incorporated student feedback into his curriculum planning over the past four years at St. Thomas Aquinas. He uses movies, picture books and Hamilton to get students engaged in learning.
Recently, he has taken on the role of director of community service and social outreach. Keffler has organized a White Rock Lake cleanup day, donation drives and other service opportunities for students.
Mental health is also a priority for him, as he is trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid and has attended a conference to improve his understanding of the mental health issues students experience.
Adam Jochelson, Lakehill Preparatory SchoolÂ
Jochelson is an engineer and uses his real-life experience to help students learn, along with tools he’s developed during his decades as a math, science and engineering tutor. His responsibilities shifted recently, and now he teaches chemistry and AP chemistry classes and coaches the robotics team.
He also coaches middle school sports teams.
Outside of school, Jochelson is active in the community, serving on the boards of organizations such as Good Local Markets and the Texas Land Conservancy. He is also the founder of a nonprofit called the Free Tutoring Foundation.
