Every other year, Seaholm’s cabinet gets to nominate a teacher to represent their district in the Oakland County Outstanding Teacher of the Year Program.
This year, Leisa Passarelli was the clear choice.
“We all agreed that Leisa Passarelli would be perfect for this nomination,” said Kristy Fekaris, Buisness Technology department chair.
Her method of teaching made Passarelli the perfect candidate for the nomination, according to Fekaris.
“She has created the perfect mix, a great balance of a very professional environment, but kids feel very comfortable there,” said Fekaris. “We have a lot of students who like to just hang out in the lab.”
Principal Terry Piper agrees.
“She’s extremely hard-working. She has a great work ethic and she just really knows her stuff,” said Piper.
Piper pointed out that Passarelli is great at connecting with her students.
“In addition to that, she just really connects with students so well,” said Piper. “Students really like her because she sets high standards for him, but she really cares about them.”
Passarelli said she is honored to receive the nomination.
“It’s extremely humbling, said Passarelli, “there’s a lot of great teachers at Groves and at Seaholm, and so I was very surprised.”
Passarelli, who has been teaching at Seaholm for 20 years, said that her favorite part of being a teacher is the students.
“Everybody’s got their own stories and we have a great time. We have fun with computers, and along the way it’s like ‘Oh, we learned something,” said Passarelli.
College and Career Center Advisor Georgeann Huszar believes that Passarelli definitely deserves the recognition.
“She’s such a fabulous gal, she really is,” said Huszar. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen her without a smile on her face.”
She is one of three nominees from Birmingham Public Schools. Each district is allowed to choose one teacher from elementary school, middle school, and high school.
The selection came through the Seaholm cabinet, consisting of department chairs, assistant principals Deb Boyer and Stacey Peterson, and Piper.
Once the three teachers are chosen, they are assessed by a committee of nine judges. The nominees are awarded points in a variety of categories, and references from fellow teachers, students and more are also taken into consideration. In the end, the candidate with the most points wins.
There are three overall winners—one from each classification. Each winner is awarded $2000.
Sophomore Zoe Gaber thinks that Passarelli deserves the nomination.
“She is a really, really good teacher,” said Gaber. “We’re never confused at what we’re learning, and her tests aren’t extreme, they always cover what we’ve learned.”
Though the tests may not be impossible, Fekaris points out that Passarelli is not a push-over.
“She knows when [students] come in where they’re at, and she wants to see that improvement,” said Fekaris, “and she will let them know if they’re not at their level and they should be doing a little bit more.”
Fekaris added that she is thrilled that Passarelli got the nomination.
“She gets the recognition she deserves,” said Fekaris.
Passarelli pointed out that the nomination is significant not only for her, but also for the entire Business Technology department.
“It validates us a little bit, because we are an elective department,” said Passarelli. “The electives are important as well.”
