A Revere teacher prompted students to write letters to increase nominations for Revere’s Distinguished Educator Award, which has recognized the contributions of staff members since 2000.

RHS history teacher Phil Heyn asked his students to write these letters to the Revere Alumni Association to yield more nominations for the award. Heyn explained the reason for asking the students to write letters.
“It baffles me that our school has not received [many] nominations and that we have such few educators that have been honored,” Heyn said.

Heyn also expounded on the impact teachers have on the lives of students.
“Just about every student has been positively impacted by an educator in their life—someone that made them feel special and pushed them above others,” Heyn said.

An alumnus of Revere, Heyn gave his opinion of the importance of the Distinguished Educator Award.
“As an alumnus at Revere, I can say there are so many great educators in the district and so many that made a tremendous impact on my life. Everyone likes to be recognized for their hard work—educators don’t need reaffirmation, but it certainly reinforces the importance of the occupation and the role they play with such an honor,” Heyn said.

Eric Moats has participated in the Distinguished Educator Award committee since 2004 and has served as a chairperson of the the committee since 2005. Moats noted the purpose of the award.

“This award not only recognizes a staff member’s positive influence on their students but lets the inductee know their efforts weren’t forgotten and [are] much appreciated,” Moats said.

Moats attributed the need for staff recognition in the Revere community to the investments of teachers into the lives of their students.

“I think it is important to recognize and thank anyone that has had a part in your life. Teachers and school administrators play a major role in teenagers’ lives. They are good role models that care about their students’ success and want to see where the students’ lives take them,” Moats said.

Moats explained that any Revere employee who meets the criteria can win the Distinguished Educator Award.

“The Alumni Association also realized that teachers are not the only ones involved with the students. There are coaches, principals, and even custodians that are influential in in Revere students’ education,” Moats said.

Tim Godard has participated in the Revere Alumni Association from its founding and helped initiate the Alumni Association’s adoption of the Distinguished Educator Award. Godard explained the reason for the Distinguished Educator Award.

“There [were] some teachers [who thought of teaching as] just a job, but then there were some teachers that it was a passion. It was more than just a job . . . . We just wanted to recognize the people that went way above and beyond the job,” Godard said.

Godard advised students and alumni to include details when writing nominations for Revere teachers.

“You have to tell us the story of why they really belong in the teacher hall of fame,” Godard said.

Marilyn Woodling accepted the Distinguished Educator Award most recently in 2013, and the Revere Alumni Association looks forward to receiving more nominations for future staff recipients.