IMPACT Instructor Named Riverside County Teacher of the Year!
/Hi, it’s me Tom Buck. I’m the IMPACT Instructor/Coordinator, and I write most of the posts on this site. On May 29th, I was honored to be named the 2020 Riverside County Teacher of the Year. The yearlong application and interview process culminated in a surprise announcement during the Rajah Report, a live show produced daily by IMPACT’s KIHS Broadcasting. I cried, it was embarrassing, but WOW, what a great shock!
I wanted to write a post about it here, but felt VERY strange doing so in the third person, so this is just from me, in the first person. I don’t know what to say other than thank you to all of my incredible students, colleagues and family (including the dogs). I was shocked enough to be Teacher of the Year for my school site and district last year, so being recognized county-wide is a bit unbelievable.
I’m proud to not only represent Riverside County, but also Desert Sands USD, and my home city of Indio and Indio High School. I’m happy that this recognition also demonstrates the impact of digital media on the world around us. As much as I do put in a lot of extra time and energy to my job, I am very lucky to be able to spend everyday sharing something as relevant, important, and engaging as digital media.
I appreciate the endless kindness and support pouring in from all directions.
IMPACT students were interviewed by local news about the announcement.
There’s a terrific article in the UKEN Report that outlines the general process:
”The Riverside County Teachers of the Year are selected from nearly 20,000 educators in the county. The rigorous application process requires candidates to spend time reflecting on, and carefully defining, their teaching philosophy. The county teachers of the year are selected on the basis of nominations by teachers, principals, and school district administrators throughout the county.
Applications are then submitted to the Riverside County Office of Education, where an outside selection committee reviews the applications on each district candidate and selects semi-finalists. The selection committee then conducts interviews and on-site classroom visitations to select the final four candidates before the county superintendent announces the Riverside County Teachers of the Year. Having two of the four County Teachers of the Year from the same school district is a rare occurrence.”
My partner in life, and member of the IMPACT Advisory Council, Heather Ramirez also captured the morning her YouTube channel, HeatherJustCreate:
