A teacher at Cave Spring High School is among 19 teachers from across Western Virginia who are finalists for this year’s McGlothlin Awards for Teaching Excellence.

The teacher is Peter Lustig.

There are more details in this official release about the awards:

Blue Ridge PBS announces McGlothlin Awards for Teaching Excellence semi-finalists

(Roanoke, VA)—Nineteen outstanding teachers from across the Blue Ridge region have been selected as semi-finalists for the 10th annual McGlothlin Awards for Teaching Excellence. These teachers now begin the second phase of the awards program which will culminate April 6, 2009 at Radford University.

The McGlothlin Awards are given annually by the McGlothlin Foundation of Bristol, Va. to exceptional educators from the region. Two teachers, one from grades K-5 and one from grades 6-12, are awarded $25,000 each, with the stipulation that $10,000 be used for international travel to broaden the thinking and experience of the winning teachers. Among the largest teaching prizes in the U.S., the McGlothlin Awards are available only to public school teachers in selected portions of Virginia, Tennessee, West Virginia and Kentucky.

Blue Ridge PBS has administered the McGlothlin Awards since 1999. The station serves the region’s classrooms by providing instructional broadcasts, extensive online resources, special projects and professional development for teachers.

The 2009 McGlothlin Awards semi-finalists in the elementary category are: Linda Bays, Otter River Elementary, Bedford County Public Schools, Va.; Lauren Beck, Raleigh Court Elementary, Roanoke City Public Schools, Va.; Rebecca Boone, Troutville Elementary, Botetourt County Public Schools, Va.; Amy Elliott, John Redd Smith Elementary, Henry County Public Schools, Va.; Teresa Hash, Marion Intermediate, Smyth County Public Schools, Va.; Elizabeth Lester, Patrick Henry Elementary, Martinsville City Public Schools, Va.; Deborah Mason, Tazewell Elementary, Tazewell County Public Schools, Va.; Tracy Samosky, Lashmeet/Matoaka School, Mercer County Public Schools, W.Va.; Crystal Whisenhunt, Independence Elementary, Grayson County Public Schools, Va.

Secondary school educators selected as semi-finalists are: Melissa Amos, Lord Botetourt High, Botetourt County Public Schools, Va.; Lee Anne Bowling-Angle, Alleghany High, Alleghany County Public Schools, Va.; Jayanne Bridges, Christiansburg Middle, Montgomery County Public Schools, Va.; Jane Carter, Castlewood High, Russell County Public Schools, Va.; Sandra Frederick, Damascus Middle, Washington County Public Schools, Va.; Jinny Wooddall-Gainey, Lucy Addison Middle, Roanoke City Public Schools, Va.; Peter Lustig, Cave Spring High, Roanoke County Public Schools, Va.; Jamie McCarthy, Northside Middle, Roanoke County Public Schools, Va.; Mary Slone, South Floyd High, Floyd County Public Schools, Ky.; Erin Wigginton, Pulaski County High, Pulaski County Public Schools, Va.

“It’s an honor to recognize talented individuals who routinely nurture and inspire youth to stretch beyond their potential,” said Tina Coffey, an instructional technology resource teacher with Salem City Schools and one of this year’s volunteer McGlothlin Awards judges. “We wish to salute these teachers who collaborate with their colleagues, inspire young people, and impact their community in such a strong way.”

McGlothlin Awards judge Maria Stallions, who is an education professor from Roanoke College, said the semi-finalists also exhibited a willingness to participate in the learning process and acquire new knowledge and skills to meet the needs of diverse students.

“They are dedicated, caring, energetic and highly motivated educators,” she said, “with leadership skills and a clear vision of the importance of teachers as role models and community members.”

In the next phase of judging, the semi-finalists must submit a standards-based lesson plan with a 20-minute video of themselves teaching the lesson in their classrooms. Judges will evaluate the teachers’ classroom instruction, classroom management, interaction with students, and, if possible, use of instructional technology such as computers, video, or digital cameras. Six finalists, three each at the elementary school level and secondary school level, will be notified by the end of January 2009.

Further details about the McGlothlin Awards for Teaching Excellence are available by calling 888.332.7788 or visiting the Blue Ridge PBS web site:

http://www.blueridgepbs.org/html/commevents/mcglothlin/mcglothlin.html.

About the McGlothlin Foundation

Beginning in a farmhouse nestled in the mountains of Buchanan County, Va., the McGlothlin family was sustained in their early years through farming and coal mining. As their success grew, the family business became involved in oil, gas, real estate and financial services. The McGlothlin Foundation was created in 1998 to support worthy causes in higher education, health care, and the arts in southwest Virginia, West Virginia, eastern Kentucky and northeast Tennessee.

About Blue Ridge PBS

Blue Ridge PBS, founded in 1967, is the sole public multimedia enterprise serving 4 million individuals in portions of five states. The station’s 26,000 square-mile coverage area includes southwestern Virginia and bordering counties in Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and North Carolina. As the region’s storyteller, Blue Ridge PBS offers outstanding informational, educational and cultural programming, along with an award-winning local production team devoted to regional issues and interests. Further, over 200,000 schoolchildren and their teachers benefit from the station’s education services that provide a safe, trusted environment for innovative on-air and online learning. Blue Ridge PBS is comprised of WBRA-TV/DT in Roanoke, WSBN-TV/DT in Norton, and WMSY-TV/DT in Marion, Va. www.blueridgepbs.org