Learning company Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) today announced that Trelawny Shepherd, a Reading Specialist at Grapevine Middle School, has been named one of only five recipients of the prestigious national 2019 180 Educator Awards. The awards, now in their 13th year, recognize educators across the United States who have helped advance the trajectory of their students’ progress in reading and math, fostering both personal and academic growth.
Ms. Shepherd teaches sixth to eighth grade students, and is a strong believer that all children have the right to learn, be educated and be loved. She fosters a classroom culture where students feel safe and comfortable, and where their voices are heard and respected. She is passionate about promoting growth mindset, perseverance, grit, and intrinsic motivation.
Ms. Shepherd uses data from the READ 180 program, an electronic based reading intervention program that identifies and addresses individual student needs through differentiated instruction, coupled with district progress monitoring tools to ensure each student’s growth is celebrated and encouraged throughout their learning journey. Not only is she passionate about building her own professional development instruction practices, but she consistently shares key learnings with her READ 180 colleagues throughout the district by proactively sharing solutions and ideas that have worked well for her.
“My favorite part of teaching READ 180 is watching my students become advocates and owners of their learning,” said Ms. Shepherd. “There is nothing better than a student seeing and recognizing their own growth over a length of time. Their eyes light up, their smiles go wide, and for some, this is the first time they believe they can do great things.”
Ms. Shepherd will be an honorary guest at the 2019 Model Schools Conference in Washington, D.C. in June 2019, where an award ceremony will be held to recognize her achievements. She will also receive an additional library of HMH titles for her classroom that will be selected specifically for her students’ ages and reading levels.