CHCCS boasts two of the last three statewide Teachers of the Year
Chapel Hill, N.C. April 14, 2023 - Kimberly Jones, English teacher at Chapel Hill High School, has been named the 2023 Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of the Year!
Jones, who in the past 10 months was named the CHCCS District Teacher of the Year and the North Central Region Teacher of the Year, was awarded the prestigious statewide honor during a Friday afternoon ceremony in Cary hosted by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. She was selected from a field of nine finalists representing North Carolina’s eight education districts and charter schools.
Following a standing ovation, Mrs. Jones said in her acceptance speech, “As an African American woman, from a single-parent, rural, working-class background, I know firsthand the transformative power of education and the impact of hardworking educators to change lives.” She later recognized and thanked her family, friends and colleagues for their unwavering love and support.
CHCCS Superintendent Dr. Nyah Hamlett, seated at Jones' table for the announcement, said, “We are beaming with joy for Mrs. Jones, as well as her Chapel Hill High School students, her colleagues and all of Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. Mrs. Jones is an equity-centered teacher who fosters an outstanding culture of community in her classroom that makes every student feel valued. She is a well-respected educator of educators, and I am so excited and proud to see her honored as the North Carolina Teacher of the Year!”
As Teacher of the Year, Jones will spend the next school year traveling the state as an ambassador for the teaching profession as supported by Burroughs Wellcome Fund and the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
CHCCS teachers have now earned North Carolina’s statewide honor for two of the last three years. Eugenia Floyd of Mary Scroggs Elementary School was named 2021 North Carolina Teacher of the Year. In 2022, Brian Link of East Chapel Hill High School represented the North Central region as a finalist for NC Teacher of the Year.
North Carolina has recognized outstanding teachers through its Teacher of the Year program since 1970. For more information, visit the program’s website.
