Teacher of the Year Program

About the Teacher of the Year Program

Each year, the Columbia County School District honors teachers who stand out amongst an already overflowing field of excellent educators. The year-long process culminates with an annual Teacher of the Year Celebration. Through contributions from the district’s valued Partners in Education, each year we are able to honor all Teachers of the Year with a delicious dinner and amazing rewards for going above and beyond the call for excellence. The annual event is an exciting time when one winner is named the Columbia County School District Teacher of the Year!

The process all starts in the classroom. Each school selects one teacher representative. Once the school-level Teachers of the Year are selected in the Spring, they complete an online application based on the Georgia State Teacher of the Year competition.

Next, five external and internal judges, who are also educators themselves, individually rate each of the 31 Teacher of the Year applications. The judges score the anonymous applications on a 100-point scale and the top five scores are named Finalists. The results remain confidential until August when the announcement is made to the community.

After the Finalists are named, the same five judges observe and interview each finalist. The five judges then select one winner based on the observation and the interview.

The winner is announced at the Teacher of the Year Celebration, and then the district winner is entered into the competition for Georgia's State Teacher of the Year, where one winner is announced in the Spring.

Congratulations, to all of our Teachers of the Year across our district's history!

Community partners who are interested in becoming a Partner in Education to help support our efforts to reward and recognize the success of Columbia County School District educators and/or support staff please email [email protected].

Meet the Top Five Finalists

Kynisha Okonkwo

Mrs. Okonkwo is an 8th grade physical science teacher at Harlem Middle School. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Biology from Albany State University. In 2004, she pursued a Master of Education in Science Education from the University of Georgia, and a year later, she earned her Educational Specialist degree in Educational Leadership from Albany State University.

Throughout her years of teaching, Mrs. Okonkwo has prioritized being responsive to the needs of her students and providing a transparent lens within her classroom. She prioritizes building positive relationships with students and parents because relationships are key to academic and social growth and success. She firmly believes that love will be reciprocated when love is shown and given.

Tawana Odom

Mrs. Odom currently teaches 9th grade ELA, Multicultural Literature, and Writer’s Workshop/Creative Writing at Harlem High School. She is a gifted certified teacher who earned a Bachelor’s degree from Paine College in English and a Master’s degree from the University of Georgia in English Education.

Mrs. Odom loves the Harlem community and has taught at Harlem High School for 22 years. She works to create engaging lessons that incorporate real-world experiences and scenarios to excite her students and showcase how academics transcend the classroom. Her goals as an educator are to teach her students to think critically and to express themselves effectively and authentically. She strives to inspire her students to believe in themselves and their ability to excel.

Tabitha Purvis

Mrs. Purvis currently teaches 5th grade math and science at Euchee Creek Elementary School.
She is a four-time graduate of Augusta University where she obtained a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Early Childhood, a Specialist degree in Teaching & Learning, and a second Specialist in Educational Leadership.

Mrs. Purvis is a steadfast believer that every child can learn and achieve the impossible. She explores ways to connect the mathematical processes with new approaches and promotes the love of learning math through hands-on experiences. Most notably, her greatest achievement is still in the smallest moments, like when a student grins at his own success.

Debra Hunter-Green

Mrs. Hunter-Green is a second grade teacher at Martinez Elementary School. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Fayetteville State University in North Carolina, a Master of Arts in Teaching in Elementary Education and an Education Specialist degree in Advanced Educational Studies from Augusta University.

Mrs. Hunter-Green’s pedagogical priorities revolve around creating a supportive and challenging learning environment where students can thrive. She strongly emphasizes differentiated instruction to meet the diverse needs of her students and incorporates real-world applications to make abstract concepts more accessible. She actively participates in curriculum development initiatives, where she has led the development of new teaching materials and strategies.

Rebecca Blumenthal

Mrs. Blumenthal is currently the Behavior Specialist and Title I Coordinator at Martinez Elementary School but she is serving as South Columbia Elementary’s TOTY. She obtained her Bachelor's and Master’s degree in Teaching & Learning from Georgia Southern University.

Mrs. Blumenthal believes students should strive to be lifelong learners. She leads by example as she always seeks opportunities to serve on various educational committees. She aims to create learning communities in which all students feel comfortable and stive to do their best. Forming relationships with students and learning information related to their lives allows Mrs. Blumenthal to cater instruction to all students' learning needs.