The Clarke County School District is pleased to announce Mr. Sean Simpson of Clarke Middle School as its 2022-23 Teacher of the Year and Ms. Andrea Cutts of Cleveland Road Elementary School as its 2022-23 Support Person of the Year.
Mr. Simpson and Ms. Cutts were announced as the winners on Thursday, Oct. 20, during the CCSD Teacher of the Year/Support Person of the Year awards banquet at the University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education. All 23 school-level teachers of the year and 22 school-level support people of the year were celebrated at the banquet by CCSD in partnership with the Foundation for Excellence in Public Education in Clarke County and Georgia United Credit Union.
“I am honored to recognize these outstanding individuals within my first two weeks as Superintendent,” said Dr. Robbie Hooker. “From our principals, teachers, and paraprofessionals, to our transportation, nutrition, and custodial staff - it takes all of us working together to help our students achieve and move CCSD forward.”
The winner of the Mae M. Whatley Teacher of the Year Award, Sean Simpson is a 15-year veteran teacher and has been with CCSD and Clarke Middle for 11 years. He is in his seventh year teaching seventh-grade social studies at CMS and also serves as a grade-level leader, mentor teacher, and as a district social studies curriculum writer.
“My favorite part of my job is building authentic relationships with students,” said Mr. Simpson. “I place my relationships with my students at the center of my practice.”
Mr. Simpson was selected out of a group of three finalists for the Teacher of the Year award who were evaluated in their classrooms by the district Teacher of the Year committee. Other finalists included Holly Ait of Cedar Shoals High School and Ashley Lankford of Cleveland Road Elementary.
The winner of the Janis J. Stephens Support Person of the Year Award, Andrea Cutts is head custodian at Cleveland Road Elementary, a position she has held for the last five and a half years. A native of former Eastern Bloc communist nation Czechoslovakia, Ms. Cutts served as a Supervisor of Housekeeping at the University of Georgia prior to joining CCSD. Under Ms. Cutts’ leadership as head custodian, Cleveland Road Elementary has garnered the reputation of being among the cleanest, neatest-looking schools around.
“Most people would not normally choose to be a custodian, but for me, being a head custodian is like a big miracle of life,” said Ms. Cutts. “I love working around and with the children. I love and enjoy what I do every day so very much.”
