PARIS – Oxford Hills Middle School math teacher Jessica McGreevy has been named Oxford County Teacher of the Year by the Maine Department of Education.
The announcement was made by the DOE on May 10 when teachers from each of Maine’s 16 counties were honored in the state capitol’s Hall of Flags at the annual event where the official announcement is made. McGreevy and the 15 other teachers are now finalists for Maine Teacher of the Year, an honor awarded each year to one teacher in Maine.
“I am very honored to serve as the 2018 Oxford County Teacher of the Year,” McGreevy told the Advertiser Democrat. “Being the Oxford County Teacher of the Year allows me the opportunity to serve as a conduit to share the work of teachers in Oxford County with the rest of the state and to advocate for our school communities.”
McGreevy, who grew up in the Oxford Hills and has ten years of teaching experience, has been teaching 8th grade math at the Oxford Hills Middle School for the past five years.
“I decided to become a teacher because I enjoy working with kids and I wanted to make a positive impact on my community,” she said.
To become a County Teacher of the Year, the teachers were each nominated by a member of their community for their exemplary service in education, and dedication to their students, according to information from the DOE. The winners were selected from a pool of hundreds of other nominated teacher by a panel of teachers, principals and business community members.
OHMS Principal Paul Bickford had high praise for McGreevy, calling her “a highly effective educational leader who has a strong teaching pedagogy, relates well to students of all backgrounds, is highly organized, and leads teachers in a variety of ways.”
Bickford said McGreevy works on many district-wide committees.
“At OHMS, Ms. McGreevy is a team leader and a member of the OHMS Leadership Team. As team leader, she communicates regularly with her fellow teachers, organizing team events and running team meetings,” he continued.
Bickford said McGreevy takes a lead role in much of the school’s professional development.
“Jess has led school-wide meetings on PEPG, school culture, and furthering OHMS’ efforts for smaller learning communities. She also is a leader in her math department, currently helping her fellow teachers with assessment design and practices to reflect a proficiency based system,” he said.
According to information from the DOE, the County winners participate in what they described as an “intensive” State Teacher of the Year selection process, including the submission of a video showcasing their classroom instructional practices.
The field will be narrowed to eight semi-finalists who will begin working on their professional portfolio. After the portfolio review and presentations to a select panel, the field is narrowed to three finalists. In October, the 2018 Maine Teacher of the Year will be selected after a school site visit and final interview.
The Maine Teacher of the Year is a program of the Maine Department of Education and administered by Educate Maine, a business-led organization.
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