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SALT LAKE CITY — An American Fork High School calculus teacher praised for her high expectations of students was named Teacher of the Year on Friday by the Utah State Office of Education.
Melody Apezteguia was awarded $10,000 at a banquet in Salt Lake City for her accomplishments in the classroom. She will also convene with other states' teachers of the year at a national conference, meet with President Barack Obama in Washington, D.C., and attend U.S. Space Camp in Alabama for the award.
Apezteguia told KSL it was an emotional night for her when she learned she had won the award. Before the winner was officially announced at the banquet, quotes from Apezteguia's students praising her work were read to the crowd, and that's when she realized she had won.
"I started to tear up at the words they read," she said.
Apezteguia said she has always concerned herself first and foremost with ensuring that students believe in themselves.
"The underlying factor for me has been building relationships with the students and helping them understand their own capacity," she said.
One of Apezteguia's former students said she expects a lot of her students and believes in their ability to master math.
"Math had always been a relatively successful experience for me with only a modest effort on my part," wrote Angela Cox. "I anticipated the same from Ms. Apezteguia's class. I quickly realized that Ms. Apezteguia's class was going to be very different. Not only did she expect us to learn at a high level, she had a unique ability to motivate us to believe that we could learn at a high level."
The underlying factor for me has been building relationships with the students and helping them understand their own capacity.
–Melody Apezteguia
Krista Thornock, who teaches language arts and history to eighth-graders at Centennial Middle School in Provo, received first runner-up and was awarded $5,000. Lois Faber, a music teacher for EskDale High School in rural Millard County, received third place and $3,000. Five finalists in all were named in advance of Friday's banquet.
State education representatives were joined by the Utah Parent Teachers' Association, superintendents and principals as they chose the Teacher of the Year out of 21 nominees presented by school districts as well as charter schools. Mohsen Ghaffari, who was named Teacher of the Year in 2014 and teaches fifth grade at North Star Elementary School in Salt Lake City, also participated in the selection of Apezteguia.
All 21 Teacher of the Year nominees received free SMART Technologies teaching software and a gift basket.
