Tennessee Council for the Social Studies

TCSS Teacher of the Year Awards

The TCSS Teacher of the Year Awards are given to honor the memory of Dr. Mary Graham, a Metro Nashville Social Studies Supervisor, who served as President of TCSS and who served many years as a member of the TCSS Board of Directors.

Award winners were selected based on excellence in the areas of classroom instruction, curriculum development, leadership in the teaching profession, professional development, and community involvement.  Each recipient received a check for $500 and a plaque from the TCSS.

In each photograph, Mark Finchum, TCSS President and Michelle Herczog, NCSS President are pictured with the Award recipient for 2015.
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Outstanding Elementary School
Teacher of the Year

Teresa Calhoun teaches fourth grade social studies at Indian Springs Elementary School in Sullivan County.   Several supervisors and colleagues wrote detailed letters of support outlining how Mrs. Calhoun fulfilled the criteria for this award.   Other teachers come from throughout the county to observe her classes.   Among her awards are both Indian Springs and Sullivan County Elementary Teacher of the Year and the Sullivan County Pinnacle Award.
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Outstanding Middle School 
Teacher of the Year

John Crenshaw teaches Social Studies grades 5 through 8 at Spring Hill School, Gibson County Special School District.  He was The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History 2013 Tennessee Teacher of the Year and 2014 Core Coach for Social Studies in World History with the Division of Curriculum and Instruction for the Department of Education.
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Outstanding High School
Teacher of the Year

Kristy Sproles teaches AP European History, US History, and World History Honors at Sullivan Central High School, Sullivan County.   She recently developed a lesson plan for the Tennessee State Library and Archives where she is a Working Group member. At her school, she is known an innovative and engaging teacher who works across the curriculum with other departments, such as, English and Culinary Arts.  

TCSS would like to thank Pearson for sponsoring the 2015 TCSS Teacher of the Year Awards.

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Tennessee Geographic Alliance Geography Awards

Beverly and Mullane Teacher of the Year Awards
The awards were established as the result of donations by two generous benefactors who are brothers.  They are named after two dedicated K-12 educators.  Thomas Mullane taught high school in northern New Jersey and was routinely voted the outstanding teacher at his school.  He won national level awards for his development of curricular materials.  His colleagues and students held him in high regard and his students went on to excel in college. 

Alden Beverly was a lifelong teacher and administrator in the Westchester County, NY school system.  He served as a teacher, assistant principal, and principal of schools in that area.  He was genuinely interested in the health and development of public education.

Becky Hasselle, a gifted education teacher at Dyersburg Middle School, and Clay Francis, an AP Human Geography teacher at Hutchison School in Memphis, received the 2015 Lottie and Alden Beverly Geography Teacher of the Year Award and the Tom and Stella Mullane Geography Teacher of the Year Award, respectively.  Kurt Butefish, Coordinator of the Tennessee Geographic Alliance, presented the awards at the March 13th TCSS Annual Conference in Memphis.  The recipients received a plaque and $500 check from the Alliance.  The Beverly award is bestowed for excellence in geography education for grades K-6.  The Mullane award is bestowed for grades 7-12.  Nominations were accepted from the teacher’s peers. 

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Becky Hasselle

2015 Lottie and Alden Beverly 

Geography Teacher of the Year Award
Grades K-6


 Lesson Plan of the Year Award 
Brian Smith, a seventh grade teacher at Jefferson Middle School in Oak Ridge, was presented the tenth annual Siesta Software Solutions Geography Lesson Plan of the Year Award during the awards luncheon at the 2015 TCSS Annual Conference in Memphis on March 13th. Brian’s lesson plan titled The Constitution of Prince Shotoku was chosen by a committee of the Alliance Board of Directors.  Brian was presented with a plaque and a check for $500 complements of Siesta Software Solutions.  
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Brian Smith

Siesta Software Solutions Geography 
Lesson Plan of the Year Award

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Clay Francis

2015 Tom and Stella Mullane
Geography Teacher of the Year Award
Grades 7-12


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