A Bradenton educator is a finalist for Florida Teacher of the Year. ‘It is her calling.’
A Manatee County math teacher has been named one of the top five educators in the state.
Deelah Jackson, a fourth-grade teacher at Samoset Elementary School in Bradenton, is among the five finalists from across the state who are in the running to be named 2023 Florida Teacher of the Year.
Florida Department of Education Deputy Chancellor for Educator Quality Dr. Paul Burns traveled from Tallahassee to surprise Jackson with the news of her selection on Tuesday, the School Board of Manatee County said in a press release Wednesday.
“Deelah chooses to be in the classroom. It is her calling, and it is where she gets her energy. She is at school many days from sun-up to sun-down working with and for students,” Maribeth Mason, principal of Samoset Elementary School, said in a news release.
Jackson has been teaching at Samoset since August 2015. She is also the site director for the Extended Day Enrichment Program and helps coach the school’s VEX Robotics competition team.
The Florida Teacher of the Year program awards one educator each year for excellence in the class and celebrates outstanding professional educators in schools across the state.
Over 185,000 public school teachers throughout the state were nominated for the honor. The winner will be announced on July 14 in Orlando.
Jackson will serve for one year as the Christa McAuliffe Ambassador for Education if she wins.
In February, she won Manatee County’s Educator of the Year, earning that title led her to be considered by the Florida Department of Education Teacher of the Year program.
“I am very proud of Deelah because she is an excellent representative of the quality teachers in Manatee County,” Superintendent Cynthia Saunders said in a news release. “The work that she does proves how education can make a difference in the lives of our students.”
This story was originally published May 18, 2022 at 12:21 PM.
