The 2021 Teacher of The Year has been announced according to a recent press release from The Sioux Falls School District and Dakota News Now.

Dr. Ann Robertson, a Native American Connections Teacher at Whittier Middle School, has been awarded the honorable title of 2021 Dr. John W. Harris Teacher of the Year.

For the 2021 title, sixty-seven teachers were nominated and seven were made finalists.

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The following criteria were used to determine anomie for the award:

  • Commitment to lifelong learning
  • Effectiveness in meeting students’ needs
  • Impact on student achievement
  • Effectiveness of home-school cooperation
  • Community involvement to promote school-community relations

In the letters of nomination for Dr. Ann Robertson to receive this award, students, administrators, and coworkers all said:

“It is impossible to write into one small letter what Ann Robertson has contributed to students, staff and administration in her many years as the Native American Connections teacher at Whittier Middle School. She organized and wrote the Native American Studies curriculum for the middle and high schools for the Sioux Falls School District. Her ability to link both Native culture and the standards our students must know is a gift. Her expectations are high and her curriculum is rigorous. She pushes her students to understand economics and trade through standardized math and social studies curriculum, while presenting material with cultural relevance.  "- The Sioux Falls School Dsitcit via press release.

The other seven 2021 finalists were: Tyler Beisch, Edison Middle School – Science; Jennifer Bogue, Hawthorne Elementary – Kindergarten; Amie Edwards, Hawthorne Elementary – Early Childhood; Bobbi Greenfield, Sonia Sotomayor Elementary – 3 rd Grade; Lindsey Johnson, Oscar Howe Elementary – Special Education; Jessica Peterson, John Harris Elementary – 5 th Grade; and Rachel Turner, Roosevelt High School – Chemistry.

Sources: Dakota News Now and The Sioux Falls School District

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