Rock Hill teacher is state's newest public education ambassador
May 9, 2009ROCK HILL, SC – May 9, 2009 – Bryan Coburn makes learning relevant. For each student he finds a hook – that piece of relational knowledge that helps them discover and master the most difficult topics and stretches the walls of his classroom into their world.
Coburn, a pre-engineering, computer programming and business teacher at Northwestern High School in York School District 3, was named South Carolina Teacher of the Year Friday night. State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex made the announcement at a banquet at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center that honored the state’s 84 district teachers of the year.
“Bryan is an amazing teacher whose love for learning is infectious,” Rex said. “His enthusiasm builds interest, and as a result, students latch onto course content and ultimately, their education with tenacity. He will make an excellent state ambassador and wonderful representative to the national program.”
As State Teacher of the Year for the 2009-10 school year, Coburn will represent South Carolina’s 50,000 teachers and participate in a yearlong residency at the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention and Advancement (CERRA). He also receives a $25,000 cash award, a Dell laptop computer, a set of Michelin tires, a ring from Jostens and a BMW X5 Sports Activity Vehicle to use for a year. In addition, he will participate in Leadership South Carolina, attend Notre Dame’s prestigious three-day Excellence in Teaching Symposium and receive a SMART board.
The four Honor Roll teachers who were finalists for the award each receive $10,000, a Dell computer, a set of Michelin tires and a Jostens ring. Each district teacher receives $1,000, and all district nominees received various gifts donated by corporate sponsors.
All teachers of the year were also offered a complimentary night at the Hilton, a collaborative effort between the Hilton Columbia Center and the Palmetto Horizon Foundation, a primary host for tonight’s celebration. The Foundation is a private group formed to fund the annual State Teacher of the Year awards celebration and to honor some of the state’s outstanding educators.
Three teachers made a lasting impact on Coburn’s life and career choice: a history teacher who set a standard for unrelenting rigor, a biology teacher who bounded into the room with a smile and an excitement about learning, and a high school English teacher who cared enough to confront Coburn when he was headed in the wrong direction.
“I believe that for each student there is a hook,” Coburn said. “This is not a temporary snag that briefly holds their attention, but one on which they can ultimately hang their hat. My goal is to take students further and deeper, so I am zealous in my efforts to find the most effective ways to stimulate, maintain and grow their understanding. As my students make connections, they are transformed from passive participants to active learners. They become independent thinkers who scrutinize how and why things work.”
Coburn uses volleyball “serves” to teach “trajectory” and builds lessons around skateboarding tricks. The student who plays guitar in a band is asked how the shape of the guitar affects sound, why its bridge is at an angle, or to explain the mathematic relationship of the frets on the instrument. As a result, his students are able to use analytical reasoning in problem solving as opposed to memorization.
In Coburn’s view, the rewards of teaching are those that are shared by both student and teacher.
“It is the student who is an academic and/or discipline problem in another classroom, yet excels in an advanced subject in my classroom because I was able to reach him. It is when former students return to say that their college course is easy because of what they learned in my classroom. It’s a letter from a former student who writes that because of my encouragement, he was able to succeed on a project. It is a doctoral thesis in engineering written by a former student who included my name in her foreword, giving me credit for being one of the few people she had known who encouraged women in science and engineering.”
As a 19-year teaching veteran, Coburn mentors new teachers, including those participating in PACE, the state’s alternative certification program, and assists colleagues seeking National Board Certification. A School Improvement Council member, he has been recognized as a master teacher by Project Lead the Way, providing continuing education and mentoring for teachers across the United States, and is a master teacher for advanced placement in computer science.
He is committed to activities which involve young people and the community and experiences the joy of giving and watching his students develop a learning habit that will continue throughout the rest of their lives.
Coburn volunteers as a YMCA youth soccer coach, has coached church league basketball and baseball, organized youth trips to nursing homes, homeless shelters and food banks. He has taught Sunday School and junior church and held leadership roles such as Sunday School superintendent, deacon and worship leader. He has organized food drives with youth teams; raised money for battered women’s shelters, children’s homes, and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society; collected food, blankets and coats for a local shelter; and organized an Adopt a Solder program for troops serving in Afghanistan and Iraq.
He graduated from Milligan College with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and computer science and earned a master’s degree in teaching from Winthrop College (University). He has also studied at the University of North Carolina, the University of South Carolina and Rochester Institute of Technology.
Also during Friday night’s ceremonies, Pamela Anne Light, a Spanish teacher at White Knoll Middle School in Lexington School District 1, was recognized with the 2009-10 Charles Dickerson Community Service Award.
The Dickerson award was established in honor of Charlie Dickerson, former CEO of the R.L. Bryan Company, who was a leader in developing the State Teacher of the Year Program. It is given annually to a district teacher of the year who exemplifies the spirit of community service.
The keynote speaker for the celebration was Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF). The South Carolina native is a lifelong advocate for disadvantaged Americans. Under her leadership, CDF has become the nation’s strongest voice for children and families. The Leave No Child Behind® mission of the Children’s Defense Fund is to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Star and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities.
Edelman is a graduate of Spelman College and Yale Law School. She has received many honorary degrees and awards including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award, and the Robert F. Kennedy Lifetime Achievement Award for her writings that include eight books. Her latest book is The Sea is So Wide and My Boat is So Small: Charting a Course for the Next Generation.
Celebration entertainers included Anna Garrett, a harpist from Greenville High School, Lonnie Russell of the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts & Humanities and the a cappella and barbershop performers from Clover High School. Also on hand with robotics demonstrations were teams from Dreher, Lower Richland, Keenan, Beaufort and Lake City High Schools, and Howard Technology Center.
The Fairfield County Fifth Gr
ade Ambassadors from Geiger Elementary School in Ridgeway served as banquet greeters and guest assistants.
The members of the 2009-10 Honor Roll are:
- Amanda McKee, ninth-and tenth-grade algebra and geometry, Johnsonville High School, Florence School District 5
- Derenda Marshall, second- through fifth-grade elementary science, McDonald Elementary School, Georgetown County
- Deborah Moore, a first-grade teacher at Gallman Elementary School in Newberry County; and
- Dywanna Smith, a seventh-grade English/language arts teacher at Hand Middle School in Richland School District 1.
This year’s Teacher of the Year Program was sponsored by the South Carolina Department of Education and the following sponsors:
Premier: BMW Manufacturing Co.
Reception sponsor: BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina
Platinum sponsors: The R.L. Bryan Company, Time Warner Cable;
Gold sponsors: Data Recognition Corporation; Duke Energy; Hilton Columbia Center; Michelin North America, Inc.; SMARTer Kids Foundation; PITSCO;
Silver sponsors: BB&T; Blue Bell Creameries; Childs & Halligan, P.A.; Duff, White & Turner, L.L.C.; Haynsworth Sinkler and Boyd, P.A.; Leadership South Carolina; Jostens; The Honorable Hugh Leatherman Chair, Senate Finance Committee; McNair Law Firm, P.A.; Notre Dame Club of the Western Carolinas; Pope Zeigler, L.L.C.; The South Carolina Education Association; South Carolina Electric & Gas Company; Wachovia Foundation; Ross, Sinclaire & Associates;
Bronze sponsors: Alcoa-Mt. Holly; The Honorable John Courson Chair, Senate Education Committee; Erwin-Penland; the Honorable Bobby Harrell Speaker of the SC House; The InterTech Group, Inc.; Nelson, Mullins, Riley & Scarborough, L.L.P.; Palmetto State Teachers Association; Progress Energy; Roche Carolina, Inc.; Savannah River Nuclear Solutions; South Carolina Bank & Trust; South Carolina Senate Democratic Caucus; State Farm Insurance; and Cynergi Systems.
The Palmetto Horizon Foundation hosted the celebration. It is the private group formed to fund the annual State Teacher of the Year awards event and to honor some of the state’s outstanding educators. The R. L. Bryan Company continues to help lead the Foundation’s efforts today.
Coburn successfully completed a two-part selection process by two independent screening panels composed of educators and private citizens.
The first panel graded the applications of district teachers of the year, and the 25 teachers with the highest scores advanced. The names of the teachers and the schools they represent were concealed from the judges during the selection process.
The second panel graded those 25 applications and selected five finalists, then conducted personal interviews with those teachers and examined videotapes of their classroom techniques. Each judge then graded the finalists independently using a numerical scoring system, and totals were tallied electronically by the agency’s Division of Educator Quality and Leadership. Not even the judges knew the identity of the new Teacher of the Year until the envelope was opened by Rex on Friday night.
What others have said about Bryan Coburn
“Mr. Coburn took difficult concepts, broke them down to the basics, and made success accessible to all of his students. While his class was not always easy, he never gave up on us or allowed us to give up on ourselves. He set us up for success by helping us to find our own answers and to become independent learners. I have had many great teachers in my life, and they are all fine examples of what a teacher should be, but Mr. Coburn stands above the rest for his ability to inspire teenagers to reach beyond themselves and to work hard and believe in themselves, knowing that the was there to help, if necessary. He opened my eyes to the world of computers and inspired me to have the confidence to follow a career in computer science.” — Former Student
“Mr. Coburn stepped up and has made this program his own. It is extremely successful and he has become one of the premiere instructors for this program not only throughout the state, but his services are in demand in many other places nationwide. Perhaps the best testament to his skills as an educator is that he takes children who are not always the most motivated or considered to be the top level students and develops them into students with a keen desire to learn and excel. Mr. Coburn is truly an educator who is successful in the classroom, but more than that, he is a teacher who cares.” — Colleague
“He is constantly developing lessons that require his students to develop reasoning skills and critical thinking skills. He works just as vigorously as he requires his students to work. He reminds me of the ‘energizer bunny’ as he is constantly working to set up his computer lab, improve his computer lab, or write grants to enhance the lab with more equipment. Through all of his accolades and recognition, Bryan remains humble and unpretentious.” — Colleague