Language arts and math are the focus for two Morgan Hill School
District middle school teachers, Gaby Tennant of Martin Murphy
Middle and Barbara Anderson of Britton Middle, who were nominated
for California League of Middle Schools (CLMS) Educator of the
Year.
Language arts and math are the focus for two Morgan Hill School District middle school teachers, Gaby Tennant of Martin Murphy Middle and Barbara Anderson of Britton Middle, who were nominated for California League of Middle Schools (CLMS) Educator of the Year.
The two teachers were honored during Monday’s regular School Board meeting, along with the Chamber of Commerce Student of the Year Wesley LaPorte and the Chamber of Commerce Educator of the Year Thomasine Stewart.
“Barbara is a leader among leaders,” Britton Middle Principal Jim McDonald said. “There is nothing greater than to be recognized by your peers, and Barbara has been. This is not me hand-picking her, although I fully concur with my staff.”
A 20-year teacher in the district, Anderson has worked with students at Encinal Elementary and Britton. She has worked with special needs children, as well as her fellow teachers. She has been a part of the California Science Implementation Network, the Santa Clara Valley Math Project, the School Leadership Committee, School Site Council, Math Task Force and the Middle School Restructuring Committee.
McDonald said he also looks to Anderson for leadership.
“She is a ‘go-to’ person,” he said. “I value her opinion. She is someone you want to have involved in things.”
Martin Murphy Principal Rhoda Wolfskehl said Tennant has similar qualities.
“I always go to her room to find out what’s going on around my building,” she said. “And I’m not the only one. There’s never a day, at the end of the day, that there are not students there (in her classroom). They gravitate towards her, even if they are not her students.”
Tennant, who has been teaching for 15 years, taught elementary school for four years in the Campbell-Moreland School District where, Wolfskehl said, her superintendent saw her potential and helped her find her niche, in middle school.
After eight years at Rogers Middle School, Tennant came to Martin Murphy, where she continues to be a mentor for her peers, Wolfskehl said.
“The other teachers also see her as a great mentor,” she said. She has been creating teams for us for years, and she’s a leader in the middle school plan we’re developing. I’m very happy and glad that she’s at Martin Murphy.”
Tennant serves on the Secondary Steering Committee, the Language Arts Task Force, the Secondary Task Force and the Middle School Restructuring Committee. She has been the language arts department chair for two years.
