LITTLE ROCK — The state Education Department says 14 teachers from around the state have been named regional finalists in competition for the title of Arkansas Teacher of the Year.
According to a news release from the agency Wednesday, the winner will be announced at a Governor’s Mansion gala on Nov. 12.
The release lists these 14 finalists: Blair Ballard, Walnut Ridge Elementary; Vickie Beene, an English teacher at Nashville High School; Julie Boyd, Hurricane Creek Elementary in Bryant; Jeannette Dempsey, College Hill Elementary, Texarkana; Oretha Faye Ferguson, an English teacher at Fort Smith Southside High School; Karen S. Hart, a biology teacher at Jonesboro High School; Kristy Parish, Westside Elementary, Searcy; Mary Katherine Parson, a biology teacher at Little Rock Central; Kathy A. Powers, Simon Intermediate School, Conway; Therese Thompson, John Tyson Elementary, Springdale; Rebecca Vaughn, Wedlock Elementary, West Memphis; Maryann Walker, M.A. Hardin Elementary, White Hallt; Carolyn Whisenant, Mountain Home Kindergarten; and Emily Kathryn White, Monticello Elementary.