Kate Doctor, who teaches in the Health Professions and Therapies Specialty Center at Monacan High, is the Chesterfield County Teacher of the Year.
Every Chesterfield County school annually selects its Teacher of the Year. Chesterfield County Public Schools selects from those honorees an Elementary School Teacher of the Year, a Middle School Teacher of the Year and a High School Teacher of the Year, then chooses the districtwide Teacher of the Year from those three honorees. Kate Doctor now moves forward to compete for Region 1 Teacher of the Year honors through the Virginia Department of Education.
“In every school and at every level, certain teachers stand out. These teachers demonstrate care and compassion, stress the importance of rigor and relationships and do the extra things necessary to help move our students toward success. They are committed to being game changers,” Superintendent Mervin Daugherty wrote in letters he presented to the district’s top Teachers of the Year, along with flowers, balloons, banners and cakes during surprise visits today to announce these awards:
- Kate Doctor is the Chesterfield County Teacher of the Year and High School Teacher of the Year.
- Maureen Capel, first grade teacher at Wells Elementary, is the Elementary School Teacher of the Year.
- Emily Skipper, math teacher at Providence Middle, is the Middle School Teacher of the Year.
Each of the top Teachers of the Year — Doctor, Capel and Skipper — graduated from Chesterfield County high schools.
Chesterfield County Teacher of the Year and High School Teacher of the Year Kate Doctor of Monacan High
In the Health Professions and Therapies Specialty Center at Monacan High, Kate Doctor teaches sports medicine, exercise science and introduction to health and medical science. She discovered her passion for education while working as a certified athletic trainer and has taught in Chesterfield County Public Schools since 2005.
Monacan High Principal William Broyles praised Doctor’s ability to motivate students by connecting real-world experiences with classroom instruction: “The encouragement and energy Ms. Doctor puts forth in working through difficult scientific material is unmistakable. … [And] she will draw on a wealth of professional connections to develop seminars and utilize guest presenters. Her work doesn’t stop in the academic classroom either as she is dedicated to working with her students in the HOSA [Future Health Professionals] co-curricular program at the school, state, and national levels. … Her work with the HOSA students … develops leaders who are confident in their knowledge, ability to present, and lead.”
A Midlothian High School graduate, Doctor earned a bachelor’s degree in athletic training from East Carolina University and a bachelor’s degree in education from Virginia Commonwealth University. In her Teacher of the Year essay, Doctor wrote that she seeks to provide opportunities for learning beyond the classroom: “It is now a rite of passage in our specialty center program for students that take my sports medicine classes to work home football games. They all know that they will get the chance to shadow our school’s certified athletic trainer, help set up and breakdown equipment for the game, experience pregame preparations like taping, treatments, and rehab for athletes, and run water bottles out onto the field during timeouts. They … also experience the thrill of being on the sidelines and in the middle of all of the action, a privilege most students will never have.”
Chesterfield County Public Schools Teacher of the Year is not the only 2023 award Doctor has won. She was recently selected as Athletic Training Educator of the Year by the Virginia Athletic Trainers’ Association — the first time the award has gone to a secondary school educator.
Elementary School Teacher of the Year Maureen Capel of Wells Elementary
Maureen Capel grew up in Chesterfield County and graduated from Bird High School. After earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Virginia Commonwealth University, she began teaching in Chesterfield County Public Schools in 2006. Since 2017, she has taught first grade at Wells Elementary.
She wrote of her teaching philosophy in her Teacher of the Year essay: “I truly ascribe to the belief that learning flows naturally once a student senses he/she is in a place of acceptance, love, belonging and security. Every single morning for the first fifteen to twenty minutes, we begin our day in the same manner with a Morning Meeting … to demonstrate to our class that we are a classroom family and there’s nothing more important than starting our day together as a community. It is the single most impactful part of our day, as it sets the tone for all other activities.”
Middle School Teacher of the Year Emily Skipper of Providence Middle
Emily Skipper also grew up in Chesterfield County and graduated from Bird High School. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Longwood University and her master’s degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. She began her teaching career in 2017 at Providence Middle, where she teaches seventh grade math.
In her Teacher of the Year essay, she detailed her commitment to meeting students’ social and emotional needs as well as academic needs: “I aim to meet students where they are and have them not just master the curriculum, but grow in their understanding and confidence in math. … Each year I aim to adapt to the variety of needs in my classroom academically, socially, and emotionally. I am not afraid to incorporate new ideas or activities to stay clear of a static classroom. … As I have gained experience teaching, I have found it is important to not think there is a one size fits all model for all students and classes.”
Teachers of the Year from every Chesterfield County school
Chesterfield County virtual schools
CCPSOnline: Aimee West
Chesterfield Virtual School: Heather Cox
Chesterfield County elementary schools
Bellwood Elementary: Mike Dunn
Bensley Elementary: Shayna White
Beulah Elementary: Alyssa Taylor
Bon Air Elementary: Stephanie Knost
Chalkley Elementary: Carrie Evers
Chester Early Childhood Learning Academy: Cheryl Kashmer
Marguerite Christian Elementary: Tenai Bullock
Clover Hill Elementary: Candice January
Crenshaw Elementary: Robyn Will
Crestwood Elementary: Dylan Pearman-Hurt
Curtis Elementary: Emily Wolfe
Davis Elementary: Katharine Price
Ecoff Elementary: Melissa Miles
Enon Elementary: Catherine Kotalo
Ettrick Elementary: Megan Parrish
Evergreen Elementary: Jennifer Ziegler
Falling Creek Elementary: Brianna Branch
Gates Elementary: Lisa Holt
Gordon Elementary: Cheryl Seaton
Grange Hall Elementary: Corinne Begg
Greenfield Elementary: Elizabeth Bryant
Harrowgate Elementary: Fred Klevinsky
Hening Elementary: Shannon McBryde
Hopkins Elementary: Brooke Pega
Jacobs Road Elementary: Noreen Ingram
Matoaca Elementary: Christine Harrold
Moseley Elementary: Emily Spangler
Old Hundred Elementary: Adrienne Haskins
Providence Elementary: Angela Ramey
Reams Road Elementary: Pamela Brown
Robious Elementary: Kayleen Lawrence
Salem Church Elementary: Dana Loy-Anderson
Elizabeth Scott Elementary: Erin Mallory
Alberta Smith Elementary: Liz Cruz
Spring Run Elementary: Kathryn Bott
Swift Creek Elementary: Mary Davison
Watkins Elementary: Glenda MacNeil
Bettie Weaver Elementary: Shannon Magne
Wells Elementary: Maureen Capel
Winterpock Elementary: Leigh Ann Pruitt
Woolridge Elementary: Brittany Read
Chesterfield County middle schools
Bailey Bridge Middle: Laura Davenport
Carver Middle: Stephanye Jackson
Elizabeth Davis Middle: Synthia Atkinson
Falling Creek Middle: Eboni Brown
Manchester Middle: Tiffany Newbill
Matoaca Middle: Stephanie Burton
Midlothian Middle: Lauren Kern
Providence Middle: Emily Skipper
Robious Middle: Brian Lukanich
Salem Church Middle: David Stewart
Swift Creek Middle: Suzanne Buckley
Tomahawk Creek Middle: Olivia Slagle
Chesterfield County high schools
Bird High: Kara Boltz
Career and Technical Center @ Courthouse: Stevette Carter
Career and Technical Center @ Hull: Colleen Coleman
Carver College and Career Academy: Jennifer Gunderson
Chesterfield Detention Center: Gary Haney
Clover Hill High: Mary “Pat” Kretzer
Cosby High: Mark Holland
Thomas Dale High: Justice Thompson
James River High: Cornell Core
Manchester High: Chad Long
Matoaca High: Rachel Heideman
Meadowbrook High: Georgina Street
Midlothian High: Daniel Abell
Monacan High: Kate Doctor