2015 National Teacher of the Year, Shanna Peeples

Shanna Peeples, 2015 National Teacher of the Year, leaving the podium after giving her keynote address at the 2015
 Educate Maine Symposium held at The Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland, Maine.

On Friday, December 11, 2015, I was an honoree for becoming a NBCT at the 2015 Educate Maine Symposium held at The Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland.  From the menu of session choices, I selected two sessions that explored the topic of early childhood education from different angles.  First, I learned about Social Impact Investment in Utah and Boston, and then I learned about some regional best practice exemplars in preschool education in the State of Maine.  I was impressed that Regional School Union One (my district) was used as one of the models during the presentation for best practice because of our wide array of choices of programs, curricula, and locations for preschools within our district.

I went to the conference promising myself that for this day only,  I would not take notes on anything, but just enjoy the day without feeling like I had to meditate and muse over the contents of the presentations.  Well, that promise flew out the window as soon as I heard Shanna Peeples, the 2015 National Teacher of the Year, from Amarillo, Texas, give her keynote presentation after lunch.  I quickly grabbed the nearest notepad of paper on my table, and began taking notes.

My notes from Shanna's speech

Shanna began her speech with an anecdote from her childhood in which a stray cat got stuck in the engine of an old car at her childhood home.  Her family members each had a solution for the conundrum. Her mom screamed while holding the bloody cat and her dad ran to get his gun. Her grandmother got a cloth bag in which she inserted the cat to calm it down, then she wrapped it in a cloth towel while she examined its injuries.

She made an analogy between her grandmother's creative, calm solution and the innovation needed to solve three of the problems in education: attracting and retaining teachers, the lack of a connection between what teachers need as professional development and what is forced upon them, and less and less time with more and more educational mandates.

Shanna then outlined three innovative solutions, which she called "The Three T's." Teachers as Coaches is her first T.  Shanna and her principal created a hybrid role for Shanna which allowed Shanna to mentor new teachers in addition to her instructional duties.  Time is Shanna's second solution.  She advised us to be creative with time; in her school, the doors are open at night in order to accommodate the schedules of both the students and adults in her community.  "My principal stepped back and gave me the time I needed." Finally, Trust.  Shanna believes that some teachers are not trusted for the professionals they are and aren't always given credit for their positive, giving nature.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from her speech:

"Innovation is not technology.  Innovation is thinking creatively of a solution."

"Equity and innovation go together."

"So much responsibility with so little say."

"He haunts everything I do," when referencing a student, Michael, who predicted that he would be in jail in five years, and he was.

"I want to teach these kids the same way I want my own kids to be taught."

"When you rip out your public schools and your teachers, you have ripped out your future."

"Teachers are how our communities transmit to everyone else, that we believe in the future."

"Thank you for always pushing back and being willing to speak for the most vulnerable people in society."