2020 Teacher of the Year – Mrs. Kay Bailey

Read why Mrs. Bailey was nominated:

“Kay Bailey is truly a teacher that goes above and beyond. She is kind, encouraging and has incredible patience with all her students, and invites them to find ways to learn and grow. She takes the time to know each student, understand their strengths and helps them become better. Kay is a teacher who understands that the social aspects of school  are equally as important as  the reading and math and works to make each of her kids great citizens as well as students. Her heart is huge and she never stops connecting with students even after they leave her classroom.” -SCC Chair/Parent

“She persists and triumphs at everything she does and every student, parent, colleague, friend is better for knowing her. She brings out the best in us all. She has stepped up to try something new to help better student outcomes for our school. She has been the laughter behind the scenes for years! Her sense of humor keeps us all on our toes and makes us look twice behind, under, over, next to EVERYTHING! She allows us to laugh with each other and makes the school a more enjoyable, happy, fun, loving, and caring place.” -Noelle Jones, Achievement Coach

“She is always smiling and welcoming. She is ready to try something new to see what works to help my child learn. She took a suggestion from our Occupational Therapist, tried it out, and it helped our child be able to concentrate more.” -Parent

“Kay Bailey approached me last year after our special education resource teacher announced her retirement and told me she wanted that job. I was perplexed. I asked her why. Why would such a successful and well-loved Kindergarten teacher want to return to school for more training, have to pass additional assessments, take on a heavier workload, and assume one of the toughest teaching positions in the building? Her response was loving, sincerely noble; she wanted to show that she could help students with disabilities believe in themselves and perform at higher levels than were thought possible. She wanted them to be able to surpass all expectations. Shortly thereafter, she was hired and went to work preparing for her new role throughout her unpaid summer months without any concern for compensation. This entire year, Kay Bailey is often one of the first to arrive at school and sometimes one of the last to leave as she had dedicated herself to helping her students to build confidence, set goals, work hard, track their progress, and make significant improvements in both behaviors and academics. Kay also has a fantastic sense of humor and once turned my office into a topical beach complete with sand, shells, and a fish tank in my desk drawer with live fish! Kay Bailey represents the best of what we have to offer at Alta View Elementary!” -Scott Jameson, Principal

But don’t just take the adults’ word for it, here is what her students say:

I appreciate Mrs. Bailey because she….
“helps me read and do math.”    “is funny.”   “helps me things don’t make sense and she explains them to me.”   “is nice.”   “She is helpful.”   “She is good at explaining.”   “is good at math.”   “makes me feel safe.”   “does so much for her kids.”   “makes us laugh and smile.”   “loves to decorate.”   “makes things fun and interesting for all her students and fellow workers.”   “is an amazing teacher”   “helps me read.”   “is kind, loving, appreciative, amazing, awesome, grateful, brave and a great teacher!”   “is honest and cares about everyone.”   “is pretty hard on us but that is okay because she doesn’t let us give up.”  “is my friend.”  “is the best teacher ever!”   “I wish I was still in her class.”