Meet Polk Schools' Teacher and School-Related Employee of the year
Polk County Public Schools has announced its Teacher of the Year and School-Related Employee of the Year. Elvin Hanna Jr., a music teacher and band director at Fort Meade Middle-Senior High, is the Polk County Teacher of the Year. Since Hanna became the school’s band director in 2019, the number of students participating in band has increased significantly, and Fort Meade’s concert and marching bands also earned their first superior ratings in decades, the district said in a news release. The number of students receiving individual band honors and scholarships has risen. Hanna created a pep band that performs at Fort Meade basketball and softball games, and he organized a booster group with parents to help support and raise money for the band program. Outside of music, he has contributed to projects like the Miner Market, which allowed students to develop their entrepreneurial skills. He’s also a regular presence at pep rallies and community events, the release said. School-Related Employee of the Year Barbara Aourik, a paraeducator at Dundee Elementary Academy, is the district’s School-Related Employee of the Year. A former VPK volunteer and substitute teacher, she jumped at the opportunity to work as a paraeducator at Dundee Elementary, where
