A military spouse who considered teaching near the bottom of her career choices is this year’s Killeen ISD Elementary Teacher of the Year.
Distracted by her own husband’s misdirection, Keisha Lovell was thoroughly blindsided Monday morning when a crowd of well-wishers burst into her classroom to deliver some really good news and a really big check.
Lovell earned a political science degree from Saint Francis College in Brooklyn, NY, where she attended on a basketball scholarship. She and her husband soldier, Wayne first came to Killeen in 2002.
She had worked as a coach and led youth in a church setting. She was accustomed to people telling her she was a natural at teaching. Still, she said, teaching seemed like too big a job and too much responsibility.
Her second-graders at Maude Moore Wood Elementary School seem happy that she took the risk, and completed Region 12’s alternative teacher certification to enter the classroom.
“She’s a great teacher,” said one of her students, Mia. “I’m so proud of her.”
“It’s the one time I’ve lost words,” said the still-surprised Lovell after the crowd filtered out of her room. “It’s something I really wasn’t expecting. I tend to enjoy my work and do it because it’s a calling. I’m not looking for recognition.”
Her husband told her she was going to have “walk-throughs,” putting her on alert falsely.
“You guys got me,” she said.
After coaching and doing social work, Lovell eased into the teaching profession and found that her friends were right - she was a natural, now in her 19th year.
“I love to see the kids grow from the beginning of the year to the end of the year and even those who go off and come back who have gone off to college,” she said.
“Knowing I have touched their lives. Knowing I can see them grow, see them reach their goals. I like teaching kids how to set goals and so they feel proud of reaching their goals and that keeps me motivated.”
After surprising the Wood Elementary teacher, Superintendent Jo Ann Fey and other district leaders including a camera crew journeyed to Harker Heights High School to surprise Secondary Teacher of the Year Spencer Wiley, head choir director.
The two teachers of the year are submitted as KISD’s entries in the Region 12 Education Service Center teacher of the year process.
Both Lovell and Wiley began the process like 50 of their colleagues across the school district, selected as campus teachers of the year.
They completed essays and hosted class visits and provided interviews.
In the end, a panel chose the pair as the best of the best and awarded them $5,000. Another 11 teachers will be named finalists and receive $1,000. The other campus teachers of the year receive $500.
Part of the application process requires the chosen teachers to elaborate on their teaching philosophies.
The second-grade teacher is a strong believer in teaching students to communicate well. Her students learn to debate, answering questions, challenging answers and in the process learning the value of textual evidence and the difference between fact and opinion.
Lovell focused on building relationships and high expectations. She wrote the following:
Relationship building is paramount in my classroom because it helps to foster a safe and productive learning environment. My expectations are high for all students. I treat all students as if they are future presidents of the United States. The goal is to create confident, independent, and unafraid scholars. I meet each student where they are and we set measurable goals, which they learn to monitor and desire to surpass.
