Photo courtesy of Hoover City Schools.
The 2019 Teachers in the Trenches Award for Hoover City Schools went to, from left, Amy Willis, Terinesia Rena Faust-Holden and Melissa Hamley.
The Hoover school system’s Finley Award Committee recently recognized three teachers with its 2019 Teacher in the Trenches Award for going beyond the call of duty to serve students in the district and community.
This year’s award recipients are: Amy Willis, a guidance counselor at Rocky Ridge Elementary School; Terinesia Rena Faust-Holden, a physical education teacher and girls basketball coach at Bumpus Middle School; and Melissa Hamley, the International Baccalaureate coordinator at Hoover High School.
Willis goes above and beyond the norm in many ways, including filling the financial and emotional needs of students, according to the person who nominated her for the award.
“Often, she will spend her own money to help a student in need,” her colleague wrote. “She has one of the biggest hearts on the planet. Even when we have faculty members in need, she will make food, help to organize food needs, etc.”
Willis also has been an instrumental leader on Rocky Ridge’s culture and climate team. From creating the school’s first Student of the Month breakfasts to participating in many faculty dance skits, Willis always tries to make school special, the nominator said.
Faust-Holden, despite being in only her third year at Bumpus, already has earned a reputation as a voice of reason and an advocate for all students, her nominator said. As a basketball coach, she works tirelessly to instill in her players the importance of a good work ethic, but she also develops relationships with other students, the nominator said.
“She consistently seeks students to engage them in conversations that focus on decision making, social skills and attitude,” the nominator wrote. “Additionally, students frequently seek her as a person to confide in.”
Hamley arrives at Hoover High early every morning, one of her nominators wrote. “Her office is always open, and there is almost always a teacher or student inside. Melissa has the rare gift of making each person feel heard without feeling rushed. She truly listens.”
Hamley also helps students develop skills to become successful adults, including time management, study strategies that apply to multiple subjects, stress reduction techniques, problem solving and oral communication, another nominator said.
