A+ Educators: Highlighting our local school staff

We hope your new year is off to great start! We're excited to announce our first A+ Educators of 2022! These winners are nominated by their school for outstanding contributions towards educating and assisting students. As we all know, the past two years have been especially challenging for educators and school staff. As a small token of our appreciation, each winner will also receive a $50 gift card to Chicano Boy in Staunton.

Congratulations again to all of the first winners of the 2022 A+ Educators Awards!

Winner: Julia Urban
School: Clymore Elementary School
School District: Augusta County Public Schools
Position: STEAM Specialist

Exceptional Contribution: Julia is truly a trailblazer in every sense of the word. She constantly takes risks and stretches herself while inspiring her students to be innovative, creative, and problem solvers. In her current instructional role at Clymore Elementary, Julia provides engaging, project based lessons that integrate the 5 C’s of creativity, communication, critical thinking, collaboration, and citizenship across multiple content areas. She collaborates with teachers to support and infuse STEAM opportunities into the core curriculum.

As a continuous learner, Julia regularly seeks out professional development opportunities and has presented at numerous professional conferences. She coordinates a variety of school-based events and serves on division-level committees, including the ACPS Trailblazers and the Innovation Team. She supports pre-service teachers through her work as a Clinical Faculty Member (MidValley Consortium for Teacher Education) and was nominated by her peers as Clymore Elementary’s Teacher of the Year in 2018.

Winner: Jodi Riley
School: Stuarts Draft Middle School
School District: Augusta County Public Schools
Position: 7th Grade Math Teacher

Exceptional Contribution: Jody is a 7th grade math teacher at SDMS. She is always thinking outside the box, going above and beyond, and moving mountains to make sure her students are learning. Jody will tell you that teaching is her fun time. She always makes learning fun and engaging for her students. One example is each year she leads her students through a unit on percents, proportions, etc., and throughout the unit, they are working on planning, creating, and marketing a product that they will sell at their Holiday Market. They are required to design and make their own products, determine how much to charge in order to make a profit, and finally complete a cost analysis.

This real world experience not only helps them learn from a hands-on experience, but the students reap the benefits of their hard work, as all of the money is spent on the students throughout the remainder of the year. Jody is a student-centered teacher through and through; if you walk into her classroom, you will always witness students working problems on whiteboard tables, working in small groups, using manipulatives, etc. Jody is the calming presence in what can be the most threatening subject for some students. She makes math magical, and most importantly, memorable.

Winner: Trey Lawhorn
School: Wilson Memorial High School
School District: Augusta County Public Schools
Position: ISAEP Program Leader

Exceptional Contribution: Trey runs the ISAEP program at WMHS. He works hard to ensure students have a clear path to success, not only in completing their GED tests but also in completing the additional requirements for ISAEP completion. He works with students to make connections with career pathways and goals beyond high school. He advocates for these students and their needs.

During the last year and a half during the pandemic, his relationships with students have helped them stay motivated to finish. When our Adult Learning Center had to close this fall due to construction needs, he worked with families to find alternate locations and even drove students himself to alternate testing locations to see them through this process.

Trey understands everyone does not follow the same graduation path in high school. He helps his students understand their options and the importance of completing the ISAEP pathway as a positive alternative to dropping out. He helps them see that completing this process will help set them up for success in their lives and careers beyond high school.

Winner: Dylan Sorge
School: Stuart Hall
School District: Private School
Position: Upper School Math Teacher

Exceptional Contribution: Dylan is an upper school math teacher who does so much more than just teach math. He is a craftsman who teaches woodworking in co-curriculars, has partnered our students with the Maker Space in town, and organizes and accompanies our students as they work with Habitat for Humanity.

He is also a gifted musician who shares his talent with our school as he participates in our student ensembles, plays for theater productions, and is part of a faculty ensemble that plays quite often for our events. His humor is endless, and he has become our resident joke teller during community meetings. On top of all that, he has recently moved on campus with his young family and is serving as a dorm parent. Our students are lucky to have him participate in so many aspects of the school and their lives.

Winner: Kelsey Sorge
School: Stuart Hall
School District: Private School
Position: Middle School English Teacher

Exceptional Contribution: Kelsey is the other half of the Sorge couple. Kelsey met Dylan here at STU, and they were married a few years later. Kelsey teaches English to middle school students, and this year is teaching AP Language to juniors and seniors. Kelsey has become known as the "mother hen" to our middle school students and embraces that role. She listens, problem-solves, and empathizes with our young students as they maneuver the challenging adolescent years.

She is a talented and published writer and shares her skills with students in our Creative Writing co-curricular offering. She motivates students to write and has encouraged many to enter their writing during National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). She lives on campus as a dorm parent, and her two young boys have become little brothers to our students.

Be sure to stay tuned for more A+ Educators Awards winners! In the meantime, If you need assistance with your internet and technology needs, you can reach us at (540) 712-0300 or by sending us a message.

Take care and be well!