Pinellas County Schools names Miss Richardson and Miss Payne Emerging Teachers of the Year

Pinellas County Schools named Miss Richardson its Elementary Emerging Teacher of the Year and Miss Payne its Secondary Emerging Teacher of the Year during a brief recognition ceremony. Both winners thanked mentors, family and district colleagues for support.

Miss Richardson, who was introduced as the district’s Elementary Emerging Teacher of the Year, said, "I'm just so thankful for everyone who's supported me and helped me. This is just such an honor. I can't believe it. And this is so cool." She said she wanted to be a teacher "since I was in the third grade," that a third-grade teacher "changed my whole life for the better," and that her aim as an educator is "to change one kid's life for the better."

Miss Payne, named the Secondary Emerging Teacher of the Year, described being "so overwhelmed" and surprised to see her parents in the audience. "I WAS SO OVERWHELMED. I WAS SHOCKED to see my dad and my mom here," she said. She said she is in her second year of teaching and "I'm not a teacher by degree," and credited the Fitzgerald family and "Miss Hawthorne being the greatest mentor," along with her school and district science teams, for helping her succeed.

Reflecting on her career path, Miss Payne said she "was a marine biologist first" and described work with outreach events and a marine mammal stranding lab as formative. "I realized that maybe as much as passionate as I am about science, I might be more passionate about students and coming in every day and passing along my passion for science to a younger generation," she said.

The ceremony was short and included applause and exclamations of congratulations for both winners. No votes or formal policy actions were taken during the recognition segment.