Ashley Linch, of Moreland Elementary School, was named as the 2025 Coweta County Teacher of the Year Tuesday night, at the annual Coweta Teacher of the Year (TOTY) ceremony held by the Coweta County Board of Education.
Linch – a 1st Grade teacher and a 14-year educator – was chosen from among 33 nominees from all Coweta County schools, and three finalists, including Lindsey Sprayberry, a 3rd Grade teacher at Willis Road Elementary School, and Jean Nicoleau, a 7th Grade Science teacher at Smokey Road Middle School.
The March 25 Teacher of the Year program was presented by the Coweta County Board of Education in partnership with the Newnan Pilot Club, and honored all 33 Coweta County School System teachers of the year chosen by their peers. The program was held at the Nixon Centre for Performing and Visual Arts.
Moreland Elementary School’s Linch is a Coweta native, and a graduate of Northgate High School. She earned her Bachelor’s and Specialist degrees from the University of West Georgia, and her Masters from Valdosta State. “As a child I went through Coweta County Schools and couldn’t wait to teach in the same place,” said Linch.
“Coweta County Schools are truly a special place,” said Linch “I grew up here. I wouldn’t be up here on this stage if it weren’t for all of the Coweta teachers who poured into my life from Kindergarten through 12th grade as a student.”
She was chosen to participate in a yearlong classroom internship program through West Georgia as an undergraduate student, and was placed at Moreland Elementary. Upon earning her degree the following year, she was hired as a pre-Kindergarten teacher, before moving to teach first grade in 2015.
Linch has served as grade level chair at Moreland for the past several years, began the school’s inaugural Junior Beta Club chapter, served on the Moreland School Council, and serves as a teacher mentor and curriculum leader, among other roles. She will serve as Coweta’s nominee for 2026 Georgia Teacher of the Year. East Coweta High School History Teacher Jennifer Sandlin has served as the 2024 Coweta County Teacher of the Year, and was the TOTY program’s keynote speaker Tuesday night.
Teachers of the Year are selected by their fellow certified teachers at each school in recognition of exemplary teaching and professional leadership. This year’s honorees represent teachers working in 1st through 12th grade, and a range of educational disciplines including English/Language Arts, math, science, social sciences, special education, health and physical education, and music.
This year’s full list of TOTY honorees includes:
Carrie Dumm, 5th Grade (Arbor Springs Elementary)
Kathy Brown, Music (Arnco-Sargent Elementary)
Holly Pelley, 5th Grade Literature/Social Studies (Atkinson Elementary)
Maranda Campbell, 1st Grade (Brooks Elementary)
Melissa Baker, 1st Grade (Canongate Elementary)
Michelle Petty, 5th Grade (Eastside Elementary)
Molly Breyne, 4th Grade (Elm Street Elementary)
Shelley Crittenden, 3rd Grade Math (Glanton Elementary)
Barbara Chambers, MTSS Intervention (Jefferson Parkway Elementary)
Ashley Linch, 1st Grade (Moreland Elementary)
Tiffany Boswell, 2nd Grade (Newnan Crossing Elementary)
Natalie Springfield, Special Education (Northside Elementary)
Cassie Yates, 3rd Grade (Poplar Road Elementary)
Kerri Geter, 2nd Grade (Ruth Hill Elementary)
Heather Thomas, Speech Pathologist (Thomas Crossroads Elementary)
Jodi Pope, 5th Grade (Welch Elementary)
Nessa McClure, 4th Grade (Western Elementary)
Debbie Krauth, 1st Grade (White Oak Elementary)
Lindsey Sprayberry, 3rd Grade (Willis Road Elementary)
Johanna Wessells, 7th Grade Science (Arnall Middle)
Katie Burns, 6th grade (Blake Bass Middle)
Wesley Schuessler, 8th Grade Science (East Coweta Middle)
Amanda Stripling, 8th Grade Science (Evans Middle)
Adriana Cantwell, English/Language Arts and ESOL (Lee Middle)
Andrea Kipp, 6th Grade English/Language Arts (Madras Middle)
Jean Nicoleau, 7th Grade Science (Smokey Road Middle)
Cori Staples, K-8 Health and Physical Education (Empower Online)
Gordon Callaway, English/Language Arts (Maggie Brown Middle)
Rebecca Moody, Science (East Coweta High)
Dano Burdette, Health & Physical Education (Newnan High)
Robyn Ridgeway, Special Education ISC (Northgate High)
Jennifer Maritz, 8th Grade Science (The Central Educational Center)
Starla Holt, English/Language Arts (Winston Dowdell Academy)
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 music.
