Being named an Excellence in Teaching winner has no longer eluded Heather Kurtz after several near misses.
Kurtz, a third-grade teacher at Pinnacle Academy, had been a finalist six times before winning this year as part of the National Heritage Academies (NHA®) Excellence Awards. The announcement came under the guise of an assembly that included a teacher raffle. When her name was drawn, she was told there were no more prizes and instead was greeted by her husband Michael, a science teacher at the school, along with her mom, stepdad, and two children bearing flowers.
“The announcement was a huge surprise and such a meaningful moment for me,” she said. “I had been trying for a long time to be a winner and tried immensely to get there. It was such an out of body experience and very emotional as I have been working hard for years to try to accomplish this.”
Kurtz is in her 13th year at Pinnacle, which outperforms the district. She started as a substitute teacher out of college and soon found a family atmosphere.
“From Day 1 I felt valued, not just as a teacher, but as a person,” she said. “There’s a genuine sense of teamwork. We celebrate each other's wins, lean on one another during tough days, and constantly share ideas to make things better for our students. There is also very healthy competition that happens among the classrooms which I think always brings some fun, too.”
While winning the award is gratifying, it doesn’t compare to the growth Kurtz’s students have shown academically and personally. She has bolstered their efforts by finding creative ways to keep them motivated and engaged, with one strategy employing “room transformations” by crafting lessons to fit a theme and turn a classroom into a fully immersive learning environment. The transformation has spread throughout the school, with other classrooms adopting the idea and coming up with themes of their own.
“It’s been so fun and energizing to see my colleagues get inspired and take it in their own creative directions,” she said.
Next year, Kurtz will begin a new phase at Pinnacle as a curriculum coach. She has always held her students to high standards, but ones she knows they can reach. It can be “tough love” at times, but she is always there to help them feel safe and supported.
“More than anything, I hope students leave my classroom feeling seen, valued, and confident in who they are,” she said. “I want them to grow academically, of course, but even more than that, I want them to believe in themselves and to know they’re capable and deeply cared for. I hope they remember our classroom as a place where they could be themselves, take risks, and find joy in learning.”
Keep up the excellent work, Mrs. Kurtz!
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About Pinnacle Academy
Pinnacle Academy is a tuition-free, public charter school in Euclid, Ohio, serving students in kindergarten through eighth grade. It is part of the National Heritage Academies (NHA®) network, which includes more than 100 tuition-free, public charter schools serving more than 65,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade across nine states. For more information, visit nhaschools.com.
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