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KINGSPORT, Tenn. - The Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) has announced the nine finalists for the Tennessee Teacher of the Year distinction. Dobyns-Bennett High School Fire Management Services and Mathematics teacher, Bryan Kerns has advanced to the final round of the 2024-25 Tennessee Teacher of the Year competition. The finalists represent each Center of Regional Excellence (CORE) region in the state, with three finalists in each Grand Division: East, Middle, and West.
"We are excited to congratulate Mr. Kerns for being named as a finalist for Teacher of the Year," said Kingsport City Schools Superintendent Dr. Chris Hampton. "We are equally excited that his work for students and the incredible opportunities he works hard to provide are elevated and celebrated. Mr. Kerns works passionately to create life-changing experiences for students and these opportunities make our community a better place to live. We wish him well as he continues in this process and in our minds he is already a winner!"
“I am excited to represent Kingsport City Schools as a Tennessee Teacher of the Year finalist," said Kerns. "I hope to further inform the folks across the state about the awesome things going on in the classrooms and shops at Dobyns-Bennett High School.”
Kerns has spent 17 years of a 20 year teaching career, as an algebra 1, geometry, and algebra 2 teacher at Dobyns-Bennett High School. In addition to teaching mathematics, Kerns has created the Dobyns-Bennett Fire Program which includes the D-B Prescribed Fire team and full progression of the Career and Technical Education (CTE) Fire Management Services courses. Kern's unique work in building the D-B Fire Program has earned him invitations to speak at the North Carolina Prescribed Council annual meeting, the Southern Blue Ridge Fire Learning Network annual workshop, and the Longleaf Alliance bi-annual meeting. He currently serves as president-elect of the Bays Mountain Park Association board and is the Southern Blue Ridge Fire Learning Network Landscape Lead for the Unaka and Great Smoky Mountains Escarpment. He holds a Bachelor's degree from Tennessee Tech University and a Master's degree from Grand Canyon University.
Teacher of the Year finalists will proceed to a virtual interview that will be held in the coming weeks where each will meet with a panel of interviewers made up of TDOE staff and other education leaders. Winners for each Grand Division will be selected from this group and announced at the Tennessee Teacher of the Year Celebration held in August 2024.
The Tennessee Teacher of the Year finalists will have the opportunity to serve on the department’s Tennessee Teacher Advisory Council for the duration of the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years. The council is composed of expert teachers who engage with the TDOE and other state agencies throughout the academic year.
The 2024-25 Tennessee Teacher of the Year will represent Tennessee in the National Teacher of the Year competition and serve as an ambassador for education in the state throughout the 2024-25 school year. To qualify, candidates must have been teaching full-time for at least three years, have a track record of exceptional gains in student learning, and be effective school and community leaders.
To learn more about the Tennessee Teacher of the Year award, click here.
Kingsport City Schools (KCS) is a public school district located in Kingsport, Tenn., serving students in Sullivan and Hawkins county. The district is comprised of 13 schools, including a Pre-K, eight elementary schools, two middle schools, one high school, a high school program of choice, and an alternative learning program; with a total enrollment of over 7,400 students.
KCS has been ranked the "#1 Best Place to Teach in Tennessee" by the 2023 NICHE Best Schools Ranking and the City of Kingsport has been voted as the "Nicest Places in America" in the October 2022 Reader's Digest.
For more information visit www.k12k.com, listen live on WCSK 90.3 FM, The Voice of KCS, or call the KCS Administrative Support Center at (423) 378.2100. We’re social too; follow us on Facebook (kcsdistrict), Instagram (kcs__district), Threads (@kcs__district), X (@kcs__district), LinkedIn (kcsdistrict), and check out our YouTube Channel (@kcs__district).