Amy Johnston has been named 2019–2020 teacher of the year.
From student to teacher, Amy Johnston of the health and physical education department has been a renegade all her life.
As a Shawnee High School graduate in 2002, Johnston found her way back to the district and has been there for the past 12 years. Now she has been named 2019–2020 teacher of the year.
Not only does Johnston teach health and physical education at Shawnee, she has also coached girls soccer, girls lacrosse and winter track, along with her involvement in senior day of service, staff day of service, #notevenonce (a drug addiction and prevention program) and staff and student wellness fairs.
Johnston said the bond formed with her students through these activities is “indescribable,” and it is rewarding to watch students grow in and outside the classroom.
The challenges of her profession are something she enjoys, striving to always make lessons relevant and fun, as a way to keep students engaged.
“The thing I enjoy most about my career is the connections you make with the students,” Johnston said. “It’s so important, especially in this department, to make sure they’re living healthy lives moving forward in their future and to give them everything we can to prepare them for the future.”
She expressed gratitude to be working alongside teachers she looked up to throughout her high school years, and she said they have helped to lay the foundation of what it means to be a great teacher and to have a positive impact on students.
With a variety of personalities and backgrounds within the district, Johnston enjoys the freedom Shawnee gives educators to make a lasting impact with students.
“It’s just a welcoming environment and we are very much supportive of one another, especially within the staff and the community and even with the students, these students are awesome,” Johnston said. “They’re the best students we could ever ask for. They make just as much of an impression on us that we do on them.”
Johnston’s family came to Shawnee to surprise her in the auditorium at the announcement of the award, and Johnston said she is still in disbelief about being this year’s recipient.
“It is completely humbling, a complete honor. I look at all the past teachers in our district that have received this award and all the teachers that I work with every day that deserve this award, and it’s such an honor,” Johnston said. “I hope I can take this honor and be a reflection of my department and what we do every day and to use it as a platform to spread awareness to the community about what we do every day and the impact we make on the students.”
With her passion for health and psychical education, her love for her students, colleagues and community, Johnston is right at home at Shawnee.
“Every day here is different. Every day you have a chance to make a new impact,” Johnston said.
