1999 Joseph Webber Teaching Award Winner

This is the 5th year for the Joseph Webber Teaching Award to be presented in Missouri, and again the Webber Award winner will be Missouri's nominee for the national prize in June.

Kay Johnson, of Monett Intermediate School, has been chosen 1999 Missouri Teacher of Merit.

Ms. Johnson has had students participating in History Day since 1991. She has made significant contributions to her regional and state programs, taking part in workshops at both levels. She has served as mentor for others in her school and region and has been willing to assist with state activities when asked. Last year alone she presented sessions at a regional History Day workshop, took part in a program highlighting History Day at a gifted association meeting, and sponsored a parent workshop in her own school. Area Social Studies teacher workshops and Missouri State Teachers Association workshops can also be found on her resume.

The numbers 50 students at regionals, 16 students to state, and 3 students to National History Day may not sound large, but for a small school district, they are significant. Adding to that what one person said in her letter of recommendation, "History is incorporated into everything taught… summer school cartooning classes had the history of cartooning in the curriculum… the 'kitchen chemistry' curriculum includes the history of ice cream…" and so on, the selection committee got a sense of the complete history teacher when they chose Kay Johnson

She apparently also keeps her students busy:

• With raffles to support the History Day Program at Monett Intermediate School,
• With sales of pizza and cookie dough,
• And, it appears that Mrs. Johnson's students at one time “hired out” to other teachers after school to get donations for their History Day fund! (I've heard of staying after school, but never before in that particular context!)

Some of Mrs. Johnson's students also once wrote, illustrated and published a book on Missouri that they sold to buy a computer for their classroom.

Congratulations to Ms. Kay Johnson, National History Day in Missouri's Teacher of the Year!