CABOT — Stepping into Tina Dunn’s fourth-grade literacy class at Cabot’s Southside Elementary School is like entering a smaller-scale Barnes & Noble. While a video of a crackling fireplace plays on the classroom’s projector, fourth-graders sit around in cozy chairs, notebooks in hand and surrounded by shelf after shelf of children’s books. But Dunn’s classroom decor isn’t the only approach to teaching that’s made an impression — it’s her dedication to her students.
Dunn was awarded the Teacher Impact Celebration Award on Friday. Meghan Ables, the 2016 Arkansas Teacher of the Year, surprised Dunn with the award during a visit to Cabot schools. Co-workers nominated Dunn for the award, which recognizes teachers who have made an impact on students, co-workers, staff members and administrators.
“It represents someone who goes above and beyond, more than just the classroom, which a lot of teachers are that way, and they all deserve to be recognized,” said Ables, an 11th-grade literacy teacher in Stuttgart. “But she impacts more than just the kids in her classroom. She impacts her co-workers and the community, and as far as I’m concerned, she’s top-notch, one of the best in the state. So that’s why I wanted her to be recognized.”
Dunn was also surprised with a visit from her husband, Josh Dunn, her daughter Katelyn Edgin and best friend Vicki Marshall when Dunn was presented with the award. She said she is humbled and honored to have received the recognition.
“If I couldn’t be in the classroom, I’d have to be in the library,” Dunn said. “To me, reading improves everything about your life. It’s a lifelong endeavor to learn and grow, and you can live so many lives through books. And getting to kids to find that little niche, that piece that they love the most and growing from that — that’s my ultimate goal. It’s not about a test, it’s not about a grade, it’s about when they walk out of my room, are they going to love reading?”
Dunn, who said some of the furniture in her classroom was donated, said she replaced traditional desks with comfy chairs in her classroom because students often abandoned their desks and went to different locations to independently read anyway.
Dunn said many of her past students come back to visit her, and she maintains a relationship with students through email and social media. Her favorite part about the profession is the kids, she said.
“Just everything about the kids, watching that moment when they do come back and see you, and you see the impact you’ve made on them,” she said.
Ables, who also visited Cabot Middle School South that day, said she enjoys recognizing teachers during her visits to various school districts in the state.
“[Dunn’s] co-workers here had nothing but amazing things to say about her and, obviously, her kids because they just came up to me and said, ‘She pushes us. She challenges us. She loves us,’” Ables said. “And teachers deserve to be recognized for their hard work, so I was honored to give her the award.”
Piper Mobbs, a fourth-grader in Dunn’s class, said the teacher makes her classroom fun and comfy.
“She’s kind, and she always lets us do fun things, even if she thinks that it isn’t fun,” Piper said. “One time, we did this thing where we wrote what made us us. We wrote it down on a piece of paper, wadded it up, and it was basically like a snowball fight with paper. If you found someone else’s, you tried to figure out whose it was.”
Fourth-grader Addison Fulbright said Dunn’s classroom is fun because of the amount of books and its cozy feel.
“Her winning her award today is really fun because it’s good to see her be happy about herself and her classroom,” Addison said. “What makes Mrs. Dunn a good teacher is that she’s always nice and funny.”
Fourth-grader Jesse Dewey agreed that Dunn is humorous.
“Mrs. Dunn has made a big impact in my life by helping me read and making me learn. She’s an awesome teacher,” he said.
Those interested in nominating an educator for the Teacher Impact Celebration Award can visit www.arkansased.gov/divisions/communications/teacher-impact-celebration for more information.
“I’m just so proud of her,” Ables said. “I hope that her energy and her passion and her dedication will trickle out across this entire district and across Arkansas.”
Staff writer Syd Hayman can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or shayman@arkansasonline.com.