When Woodridge Middle School teacher Elise Cobb walked into her classroom on Feb. 16, she received quite a surprise.
Superintendent Desi Kirchhofer and other Central Office employees were waiting inside to give her the good news that she had been named the Northwest R-1 School District’s Teacher of the Year for the 2021-2022 school year.
“They came and hid in my room,” Cobb said. “I was shocked, and I was very honored obviously.”
Cobb, 36, of O’Fallon teaches seventh-grade social studies at the middle school in High Ridge. She previously had won the district’s Middle School Teacher of the Year award.
Liz Green, assistant principal at Woodridge Middle School, said she was one of the people who nominated Cobb for the award.
“The typical things teachers do sometimes are not super entertaining or engaging,” Green said. “(Cobb) brings it to life for her kids.”
As the latest district Teacher of the Year, Cobb’s name will be added to a trophy that stays in the district, and she will receive a trophy of her own to keep.
She also is now in the running for the Missouri Regional Teacher of the Year award.
Finding her way to teaching
Cobb has been in education for 13 years, starting out as a substitute teacher.
“Being a child of the 80s and 90s, I went to college in the early 2000s and I wanted to be Rachel Green from “Friends,” so my first degree was actually in fashion merchandising and marketing,” Cobb said. “I graduated in 2008 and that was when the economy crashed.”
She said a family member suggested she try her hand as a substitute teacher.
“I just fell in love,” she said.
Cobb graduated from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in social studies with a minor in secondary education and classical languages.
“History is a huge passion of mine and it always has been,” she said.
Cobb joined the Northwest District in 2016 and has been teaching seventh-grade social studies ever since.
Other award winners
■ Elementary Teacher of the Year – second-grade teacher Mindy Iezzi from Brennan Woods Elementary.
■ High School Teacher of the Year – English and language arts teacher Ashley Schmied.
■ Apple Award winners – Northwest High School special education teacher Andrea Lackro, Valley Middle School counselor Alysha Oliger and House Springs Elementary first-grade teacher Kerri Shelton.
■ Golden Bell Award winners – Valley Middle School applied behavior analyst Cara Kirby-House, Maple Grove Elementary paraprofessional Jessica Pool and Northwest High School health room assistant Michelle Schmoll.
■ PRIDE Award winners – Steve and Vicki Tamboli from the Brenden’s Backpack organization.
The Teacher of the Year Award goes to a Northwest R-1 teacher who has been with the district for at least four years and shows enthusiasm, pride in his or her work and strong teaching and communication skills, according to a district statement.
Both the Apple Award and Golden Bell Award winners are support staff and certified teachers who show excellent character, performance and service to the district, according to a district statement.
The PRIDE Award winner is a community member who goes above and beyond to help the schools.