2024 Teachers of the Year have been chosen by their fellow teachers in each of the Coweta County School System’s 33 schools.
Teachers of the Year are selected by their fellow certified teachers at each school in recognition of exemplary teaching, and serve as ambassadors of their profession. This year’s honorees represent teachers working in Kindergarten through 12th grade, and a range of educational disciplines including English/Language Arts, math, music, science, social sciences, career education, special education, coaching and media.
They will be honored at the Coweta County Teacher of the Year Program on May 1, held at the Nixon Centre for Performing and Visual Arts. The Coweta County Board of Education presents the program annually with the Newnan Pilot Club. The 2024 Coweta County Teacher of the Year – who is also chosen by current and former Coweta educators – will be announced at that program.
This year’s TOTY honorees include:
Brittany Hand, K-5th Grade Special Education (Arbor Springs Elementary)
Rebecca Gore, Media Specialist (Arnco-Sargent Elementary)
Heather Dailey, Kindergarten (Atkinson Elementary)
Abby Grace Townsend, 1st Grade (Brooks Elementary)
Whitney Self, 5th Grade (Canongate Elementary)
Mackenzie Sibley, 3rd Grade (Eastside Elementary)
Rebecca Craver, 4th Grade (Elm Street Elementary)
Jennifer Pineda, 5th and 6th English/Language Arts and Social Studies (Empower)
Jessica Anderson, Kindergarten (Glanton Elementary)
Felecia Dunson, Special Education/BRIDGE (Jefferson Parkway Elementary)
Diana Ewing, Music (Moreland Elementary)
Brittany Hajzak, 3rd Grade (Newnan Crossing Elementary)
Courtney Gordon, 3rd Grade(Northside Elementary)
Abby Loftin, 1st Grade (Poplar Road Elementary)
Stephanie Landrum, Media Specialist (Ruth Hill Elementary)
Renee Rich, Media Specialist (Thomas Crossroads Elementary)
Jasmine Jones, 4th Grade (Welch Elementary)
Mandy Prophett, Early Intervention Program (Western Elementary)
Jennifer Dunn, English for Speakers of Other Languages (White Oak Elementary)
Lea Davenport, 1st Grade (Willis Road Elementary)
Ashley Prince, Media Specialist (Arnall Middle)
Stephanie Humphrey, 8th Grade Math (Blake Bass Middle)
Marissa Delaney, 6th Grade Social Studies (East Coweta Middle)
Brian Self, 7th Grade English/Language Arts (Evans Middle)
Kristin Davis, 8th Grade Math (Lee Middle)
Dwight McDaniel, 6th-8th Grade English/Language Arts (Maggie Brown Middle)
Mallory Berry, 7th and 8th Grade Gifted Science (Madras Middle)
Gillian Phillips, 8th Grade English/Language Arts (Smokey Road Middle)
Dave Whittington, Aerospace and Aviation (Central Educational Center)
Jennifer Sandlin, History (East Coweta High)
Marc Gilmore, Special Education/Collab (Newnan High)
Ellen Ratliff, 10th Grade Literature (Northgate High)
Bruce Dukes, Physical Education (Winston Dowdell Academy)
TOTYs are exceptionally dedicated, knowledgeable, and skilled classroom teachers who are selected by their peers in each Coweta County School System school. Finalists for county teacher of the year – who serve as the system’s nominee for Georgia Teacher of the Year – are chosen by previous Teachers of the Year and independent judges based on the quality of their teaching, professional development, teaching philosophy and methods, community involvement, contributions to education, and their ability to inspire students of all backgrounds and abilities to learn.
Mollie Wilson – a 24-year educator and a third grade teacher at Canongate Elementary School – is Coweta County’s 2023 Teacher of the Year. Mary Amoson, a Kindergarten teacher at Brooks Elementary School, and Julie Eidson, a 6th Grade Science teacher at East Coweta Middle School, were also chosen as finalists for 2023. Wilson is Coweta’s nominee for Georgia Teacher of the Year.
