Paper towel rolls, soup cans and buttons become 3-D figures or game pieces in her classroom; egg cartons and ice trays are transformed into math activities. Her class recently designed the “Emerald City” from The Wizard of Oz with recyclable coffee tins and soup and soft drink cans that became the Tin Man while an old broom was used to create his Scarecrow friend. Eight-year-old Lucy Pollard says Chick helps students learn new material by putting “pretty much anything” to music. “She makes poems and songs to help us (learn),” Lucy says. “It is such a big help.” For Chick, educating young minds has been her passion since graduating from the U of M 13 years ago. “Teaching, for me, is a 24/7 job,” she says. “I can’t turn it off. All summer long, I’m thinking about the children and what I’m going to do the next school year.” Richland principal Sharon McNary said that besides being a skilled educator, Chick has a single-minded focus on the academic, social and emotional development of each and every student. “She really cares about our students — it’s not just a job to her,” McNary says. Chick is also intent on giving back to the University that gave her a start. She serves as a mentor for undergraduate teacher candidates, a role she takes very seriously. “As a teacher leader, it is my job to help cultivate the profession for the future,” says Chick. “The teacher I’m mentoring today could very well be across the hall from me next year. I take that very seriously because I always ask myself when I let that student teacher go, ‘Would I want my children to be in that class? Would I want to work with you?’” Chick allows her student teachers to fully present lessons to their pupils so they will be prepared for their classrooms. “I think the U of M is doing a great job with their undergraduate program,” Chick says. “I feel like the students are coming out with even more resources than I had.” She says the University heavily stresses to its teachers-in-training that they find and use the latest technologies as well as outside resources to supplement lessons and activities. Chick says she somewhat unintentionally backed into the Teacher of the Year honor. As a Teach Plus Teaching Policy Fellow, she and two other fellows embarked on a research project designed to improve Memphis City Schools’ teacher recognition programs. One of her contributions to the project was to apply for the Tennessee Teacher of the Year award. That, she says, is when the unexpected happened: she placed first in the Memphis division of the statewide contest. “After it got that far, the research part was over,” Chick says, and it then became “just about the competition.” Her accomplishments have caught the attention of both local and state education officials. “Her commitment to education is evident, and her character has been shaped by her exceptional ability and the commitment to serve,” says Dr. Kriner Cash, former superintendent of Memphis City Schools. “The College commends Ms. Chick on this outstanding honor and is proud that her University degree is serving her and the community 36
SP R I NG 2013
Top: Allyson Chick, 2012-13 Tennessee Teacher of the Year, accepted the award presented by Kevin Huffman, commissioner of the state’s Department of Education, and Linda Irwin, vice president of the Niswonger Foundation, at a ceremony in Nashville, Tenn., in October 2012. Bottom: Chick, third-grade teacher at Richland Elementary, has taught with Memphis City Schools for 12 years.
well,” says Dr. Donald Wagner, dean of the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences. Chick noted that if she could offer one piece of advice to new teachers, it would be to “make the building engineer, the custodian and the school secretary your new best friends. Those three people are invaluable to you. They will save you from a crisis in a minute,” she says. Kevin Huffman, Tennessee State Commissioner of Education, says the teacher recognition program only strengthens the educational system. “The Teacher of the Year award allows us to not only recognize some of the best teachers, but it also provides an opportunity for us to share and learn from their inspired, effective methods of instruction,” he says. “Allyson is a perfect example.” Chick added that she greatly appreciates the recent celebrations in her honor, including a “Queen for a Day” party at Richland, but she feels the recognition should also be bestowed on Memphis City Schools as well. “These kids and the teachers at my school were so proud,” Chick says. “This was just a great overall experience for everyone involved.” THE UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS