Fayette County Public School’s Teacher of the Year representatives spent time outside of the classroom recently to discover ways they can build connections for students.

Each school’s Teacher of the Year winner attended a luncheon at the Chamber of Commerce, where President/CEO Colin Martin reviewed local economic data and spoke on the impact of public school educators in Fayette County.

“People move here because of you,” he said to the teachers during the closing of his speech. “Families relocate to Fayette County because of the excellent public school education their children can receive. You are the people that make that happen and are vital to our county’s economic success.”

Teachers also heard from luncheon sponsor Maggie Reenstra, on behalf of Community & Economic Development with Coweta-Fayette EMC. Reenstra shared ways classrooms can connect with the company, from Bright Ideas grants to the SPARK Energy Education Program.

After the luncheon, teachers visited Trilith to learn about the studios, foundation, town, and Story Arts education curricular resources. Presented by the Trilith Foundation, teachers also experienced a mindfulness workshop with Krissy Lewis, learning strategies they could use to improve work-life balance.

To close the day, teachers received a behind-the-scenes tour of Trilith Studios, exploring the many different jobs it takes to run one of the nation’s largest film production facilities.

“It was a day I could focus on myself, learning ways that I could grow as a professional and recharge for my students,” said Flat Rock Middle teacher Sarah Thompson. “We explored opportunities to build connections for our classrooms, right here in Fayette County. I can’t wait to take these resources back to my colleagues.”

The teachers themselves requested the professional learning event through a recent committee established by Superintendent Dr. Jonathan Patterson. Led by the current Fayette County Teacher of the Year Christy Todd, the committee is looking for ways to expand the Teacher of the Year program, increasing opportunities for teacher leader development.

“Building connections with local community partners is key not only to student success, but to the professional growth of our teachers,” said Todd. “It is my hope that this event will continue in the future with additional partner involvement, so our teachers and students can learn more about opportunities to connect with our community and local workforce.”

Fayette organizations and businesses interested in volunteering for future professional development events can contact Fayette Coordinator of Innovative Partnerships Virginia Gibbs at [email protected].