Katherine McRee named Dougherty County’s Teacher of the Year
Staff Photo: Alan Mauldin
By Alan Mauldin
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ALBANY — Among the 23 Dougherty County School System Teacher of the Year candidates, one was wearing a necklace from which dangled photos of her inspiration, the first-graders in her class.
Teacher Katherine McRee was named the system’s overall Teacher of the Year winner and will represent the district at the state level.
“Since I couldn’t bring them here with me tonight, I wanted to represent all of the children who have been my biggest fans this year and (are) the reasons why I love being a teacher,” McRee said during an interview following the ceremony held at the Dougherty County Northwest Library event center.
An Albany native, McRee is in her 11th year as a teacher and fourth in Dougherty County after spending her first seven years in Valdosta. Her job entails teaching all subjects, including English/reading, math, science and social studies.
In addition to McRee, the finalists for top teacher honors were Melissa Clark from Commodore Conyers College & Career Academy, Angela Daniel from International Studies Elementary Charter School, Cursula Davis from Monroe Comprehensive High School and Angela James from Robert H. Harvey Elementary School.
“I’m incredibly honored to represent the Dougherty County School System as their teacher of the year, and I want to continue to carry out this mission of building a better community one child at a time,” McRee said, noting that she realized that she wanted to be a teacher when she was the same age as her current students. “My first-grade teacher, Mrs. Pinkston, inspired me to be a teacher myself. This is 100% what I was meant to do in life. There’s no greater reward than being a teacher and shaping young lives.”
During his remarks to the group of teachers, Superintendent Kenneth Dyer thanked them for their dedication.
“Every day, you are on the front lines of education,” he said. “When you’re not pushing to motivate students, you’re often working to inspire parents or trying to strike some semblance of work/life balance with your own families.
“Despite all of the challenges, however, no one knows better than you that, with the right guidance, support and inspiration, our students can achieve their highest potential. More than any other profession, you have the opportunity to touch the lives of others in ways that can impact them for a lifetime.”
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