The Sidekick adviser Chase Wofford has been named 2023-24 Coppell High School Teacher of the Year. The announcement was made by CHS Principal Laura Springer at Wednesday’s staff meeting.
On Dec. 1, seven nominees for Teacher of the Year comprising of AP English/Creative Writing teacher Matthew Bowden, Anatomy and Physiology teacher Jodie Deinhammer, AP/IB Art teacher Michelle Hauske, special education teacher Laura Hynson, health science teacher Ray Pool, band director Kimberly Shuttlesworth and Wofford.
Not expecting to receive the acclamation, Wofford was surprised to hear his name be called Springer as she announced the winner.
“I froze and I wasn’t sure what to do,” Wofford said. “After seeing other teachers go through the same thing, in my mind I was thinking, ‘I am kind of glad I don’t have to stand up there and talk in front of everyone,’ but in the moment I was very honored. It was all a cool deal and once I saw my family in the auditorium, it made it even less uncomfortable to talk about myself, which is not my favorite thing to do.”
He thanked the Career and Technical Education department for its efforts in the school during his words.
“I wanted to recognize the CTE department just because I think CTE teachers work really hard for the class to be something that the kids like coming into,” Wofford said. “We’re not the AP of IB class that stands out academically, but we do pride ourselves on developing skills that apply to real life.”
KCBY-TV adviser Kendra Carter spoke on behalf of Wofford during the meeting. She cites him for his kindness and dedication as an adviser.
“I talked about him being a colleague and how I appreciate working with him,” Carter said. “In between classes, we always hang out in the hallways and talk, and I enjoy his sense of humor and his willingness to help. I also appreciate how whenever there is any student that walks by, he always speaks to them which shows the genuine relationship he has with his students, and how he is caring and puts in so much time in the program. He does this not because it is his job, but because he is passionate about it. He is truly teaching them, and it’s not just a class – he is preparing them for the future.”
The Sidekick executive editor-in-chief Sri Achanta said the staff is thrilled about Wofford receiving this recognition.
“There are not enough words to describe how proud our staff felt,” Achanta said “Everyone is so happy, because he works so hard for our program and this is the recognition he definitely deserves. As an adviser, he reads every single thing posted on coppellstudentmedia.com, and we post an extraordinary amount of things. Every single story that has been posted, has been through his eyes and what’s even more amazing is that he remembers every detail about it.”
Features editor Anushree De contributed to this report.
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