Big Park’s Bonny Smith named top teacher in Yavapai County

PRESCOTT - Bonny Smith of Big Park Community School, in the Sedona-Oak Creek Unified School District, was named the 2013 Yavapai County Teacher of the Year.

The Teacher of the Year Banquet and Ceremony, conducted by the Yavapai County Education Foundation, was held at the Prescott Resort.

The winner of the Outstanding First-Year Teacher Award went to John Colgan of Glassford Hill Middle School, in the Humboldt Unified School District.

Other honorees included category winners:

• Penny Nicholas of Washington Traditional School (Prescott Unified School District) in the PreK-3rd Grade Category;

• Laura Russo of Bradshaw Mountain Middle School (Humboldt Unified School District) in the Cross-Grades Category;

• Melissa Townsend of Prescott High School (PUSD) in the High School Category;

• Nate Groves of Bagdad High School (Bagdad Unified School District) in the Small District Category; and,

• Smith in the Fourth-Eighth Grade Category.

The award winners were selected from 63 nominees from 32 public schools, three charter schools and one private school in Yavapai County - an all-time high number of nominees for the Education Foundation.

Since 1994, the YCEF - a 501c(3) organization - has been honoring outstanding Yavapai County teachers for their exceptional commitment and contribution to the students whom they serve. In the past 19 years, the foundation has sent teachers back to their schools and districts with more than $130,000 to invest in their classrooms.