November 22, 2024

USD 457 Teachers Named Semi-Finalists For Crystal Apple Award

USD 457

The Crystal Apple Committee of the Garden City Area Chamber of Commerce has announced semi-finalists for this year’s Crystal Apple Teacher Recognition program. Teachers are the heart of our schools. They nurture our children’s inquisitive minds and prepare them for the challenges of the future.  

The committee received 40 applications this year for the 2019 Crystal Apple Awards.  The 40 applications were narrowed down to 12 through a blind read by three committee members. The 2019 semi-finalists are:  Dani Jo Becker, Garfield Early Childhood Center; Lauren Bendert, Gertrude Walker Elementary School; Dalana Billinger, Gertrude Walker Elementary School; David Brager, Gertrude Walker Elementary School; Kelly Butcher, Garden City High School; Yuriy Drubinskiy, Garden City High School; Melissa Hensley, Garden City High School; Makenzi Johnson, Garden City High School; Paul Lappin, Garden City High School, Roxanna Reed, Abe Hubert Elementary School; Lyle Sobba, Garden City High School; and Sarah Wise, Kenneth Henderson Middle School.

The Crystal Apple Committee will narrow the 12 semi-finalists down to six finalists in September following individual teacher interviews.  The six finalists will then be observed by four additional Crystal Apple committee members in their classrooms at times unknown to each of the six teachers.

The top three of the six finalists will be named as the 2019 Crystal Apple Teachers of Finney County at a banquet beginning at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 14, 2019, at the Clarion Inn, 1911 East Kansas Avenue. The Crystal Apple Teachers will receive an engraved crystal apple, $1,000 cash award and an iPad.  The three finalists will be presented with a cash award of $250.

This year marks the 24th Anniversary of the Chamber’s Crystal Apple Awards.  The Chamber’s Crystal Apple Committee is made up of representatives from the business community who look to honor outstanding teachers in Finney County for their exceptional efforts in education.  Teachers need and deserve the support of our community in educating our next generation of productive and responsible citizens.