Educator with local roots receives New Teacher of the Year honor

1/12/09  A Lutheran educator with local roots has received the honor of New Teacher of the Year, teaching this past year at a Lutheran school in Florida.

Miss Leah Schmidt has been selected by the Lutheran Education Association (LEA) as the Outstanding New Lutheran Early Childhood Teacher of the Year.   

Miss Schmidt is a graduate of St. Paul Lutheran School in Serbin where she attended Kindergarten through 8th grade.  She is a 2002 Giddings High School graduate and received her teaching degree from Concordia University of Texas in 2007. 

Miss Leah worked for St. Paul’s Early Childhood Center during her high school and college years and was a soft spoken, loving teacher.  She is now completing her second year at St. Luke Lutheran School in Oviedo, Florida, where she teaches first grade. Schmidt is the lead educator out of three teachers at that grade level. 

 Miss Schmidt has also made three trips during the past year with her congregation to work at an orphanage in Honduras and is planning for another trip there this summer.    

The LEA is a national organization for Lutheran Schools and chose Miss Schmidt based solely on letters of recommendation, autobiographical information and evidence of effective teaching with all identifying information being confidential until after the selection had been made. 

 The qualities noted by the LEA Early Childhood Network included statements such as: “This person has a strong commitment to Christ both in and out of the classroom” and “She is obviously "mission-minded" to travel to Honduras and be so involved in wanting to establish a relationship with the children and families there, as well as the children in her classroom!”

Leah is the daughter of David and Karen Schmidt of Serbin.

2009 Lee County Fair Association scholarship deadline approaches

1/12/09  The Lee County Fair Association is accepting applications for Junior Fair Board. Students interested is serving during the 2009 Lee County Fair and Rodeo need to apply this week.

This is a two year program that enables high school juniors and seniors to earn scholarship money through ticket sales and through service to the community.

Fair Board president, Billy Morgan has presented programs at the area high schools for juniors and seniors interested in serving.

The deadline for applications is this Friday, January 16^th.  Applications are available through the high school counselor's office, at the Giddings Area Chamber of Commerce office or click here (beginning Tuesday) to down load the form.