Walled Lake honors dozens of educators and names district teachers of the year

Walled Lake Consolidated Schools held its annual Teacher of the Year celebration during the board meeting, honoring 20 school-level winners and naming three district finalists and overall winners for elementary, middle and high school.

The event showcased the district’s selection process and recognized classroom teachers across early childhood, elementary, middle and high school levels. Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Ali Hamka outlined the multi-stage nomination and review process used to identify finalists and district winners.

Hamka said the district’s selection procedure begins with nominations from colleagues, parents, students or administrators; buildings pair to evaluate nominees and create a pool of finalists. A committee of past teachers of the year, a board member and district administrators reduced those finalists before interviews and essays produced the district’s top candidates.

The board and superintendent presented certificates and tokens of appreciation from the Foundation for Excellence. Jackie Gerwin, executive director of the Foundation for Excellence, told the room the foundation provides classroom grants and gifts for the district winners and finalists. A representative of Walled Lake Schools Federal Credit Union presented $250 Visa gift cards to the three district finalists; the LaFontaine Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership in Walled Lake contributed additional cash awards and a lease prize for the top district honoree.

The district’s three district-level winners were named as follows: Robert Vogt (Glengarry Elementary) as the elementary-level district winner, Chelsea Shikora (Sarah Banks Middle School) as middle school district winner, and Andrew Tiberian (Walled Lake Central High School) as high school district winner. The board announced 3rd place (Chelsea Shikora) and 2nd place (Robert Vogt) cash awards from LaFontaine, and a two-year lease on a Jeep for the district’s overall teacher of the year, Andrew Tiberian. District staff noted Tiberian was not present to accept the vehicle award at the meeting.

Winners and finalists described the honor as humbling and emphasized students as the motivation for their work. Gerwin and other community partners thanked teachers for their day‑to‑day efforts and for the role they play across school life.

The board recessed briefly after the presentation and then continued with the remainder of the agenda.

The district said the three district winners will be considered for the Oakland County Teacher of the Year recognition.

Evidence supporting this report appears in meeting remarks by Ali Hamka introducing the Teacher of the Year program, the presentations of certificates and gifts by Jackie Gerwin and representatives from Walled Lake Schools Federal Credit Union and LaFontaine Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, and the board’s announcements of the district winners.