Eastside High agriculture teacher named finalist for Newton County Schools award

Dr. Katrina Pollard, agriculture education teacher at Eastside High School, said she is a finalist for a Newton County Schools teacher recognition and described how her own experience inspired her to become a teacher.

Pollard told the meeting she grew up in a small town and in poverty, and that an agriculture teacher in high school became “one of the biggest mentors in my life,” prompting her to pursue teaching. “The most important lesson that I hope my students take when they leave my class is that regardless of any situation that they're put in, that they can be successful,” she said.

Pollard said she places students in challenging situations — from applying to college to backing up a trailer — so they learn to be successful in unfamiliar tasks. She described the most rewarding part of her career as seeing former students become teachers: “The best part is one of my former students is my teaching partner. She teaches right down the hallway from me,” Pollard said. She added that this year the school hired another former student as an English teacher.

Speaking about the recognition, Pollard said being named a finalist was “a huge honor” because Newton County Schools has “tremendous teachers,” and that she was humbled to be chosen from many candidates: “there's just three of us,” she said.

The transcript does not specify the name of the award, the selection timeline, the awarding body beyond Newton County Schools, or what, if any, next steps follow from being a finalist.