草榴社区

"Of the Year” award finalists announced for Evening of Excellence ceremony

Gaston County 草榴社区s is pleased to announce the finalists for its “Of the Year” awards for 2025-2026: Teacher of the Year, Principal of the Year, Assistant Principal of the Year, New Teacher of the Year, Teacher Assistant of the Year, and Central Office Administrator of the Year.

The winners will be announced during the annual Evening of Excellence awards ceremony on Thursday, May 1 at Stuart W. Cramer High 草榴社区.  Anyone in Gaston County 草榴社区s is welcome to attend the awards ceremony, which begins at 6:30 p.m.

Again this year, the Evening of Excellence program is presented by Truist with additional partnership support from the Gaston County Education Foundation and Courage Kia in Gastonia.

Below is a list of the “Of the Year” award finalists (listed in alphabetical order):

鈻� Teacher of the Year
Kathryne Lavender, Pleasant Ridge Elementary 草榴社区
Elizabeth Leonard, North Gaston High 草榴社区
Bridget Matzke, Highland 草榴社区 of Technology
John Ramos, Forestview High 草榴社区
Karmen Teague, South Point High 草榴社区

鈻� Principal of the Year
Josh Allen, South Point High 草榴社区
Laura Clark, W.A. Bess Elementary 草榴社区
Rebecca Huffstetler, East Gaston High 草榴社区
Donna Kelly, Rankin Elementary 草榴社区
Jaime Wallace, Brookside Elementary 草榴社区

鈻� Assistant Principal of the Year
Carmin Adams, Pinewood Elementary 草榴社区
Jenny Carper, Highland 草榴社区 of Technology
Charlotte Friday, W.A. Bess Elementary 草榴社区
Deon Kennedy, Mount Holly Middle 草榴社区
Logan McGuire, Bessemer City Middle 草榴社区

鈻� New Teacher of the Year
Alyssa Eckard, Ashbrook High 草榴社区
Jamie Harris, Page Primary 草榴社区
Richard Morris, Forestview High 草榴社区
Emily Parris, Cherryville Elementary 草榴社区
Arianna Weber, Page Primary 草榴社区

鈻� Teacher Assistant of the Year
Catherine Cox, Springfield Elementary 草榴社区
Melanie Dellinger, Brookside Elementary 草榴社区
Christi Jolley, W.P. Grier Middle 草榴社区
Lee Washington, Robinson Elementary 草榴社区
Angela Yount, Lowell Elementary 草榴社区

鈻� Central Office Administrator of the Year
Karen Archer, Academic Services
Susie Bradley, Student Support Services
Scott Cassell, Technology Support Services
Sarah Rector, Academic Services
Leigh Smith, Human Resources

The finalists/winners are chosen through a nomination and judging process that includes an application/resume; voting by colleagues; principal/supervisor recommendation; interview with a panel of judges made up of current and retired educators, business representatives, and community leaders; classroom observation (if applicable); and recommendation from Human Resources.     

to watch last year’s Evening of Excellence awards ceremony.