CCSD Educator Named To Georgia Trend's '40 Under 40' List

CANTON, GA -- An educator in the Cherokee County School District has been named to Georgia Trend's "40 Under 40" list in the most recent edition of the magazine. Dr. Jennifer Reynolds is a special education teacher and department chair at Teasley Middle School.

The magazine notes Dr. Reynolds recently presented her "research results on developing collaborative relationships to support parents of children with autism spectrum disorders at a national education conference."

“I think it actually chose me,” she told the magazine of the special education field in which she’s worked for the past 12 years. “I felt I had something that could help those students progress. You really have to have a heart for it.”

Georgia Trend also notes Dr. Reynolds helped charter and serves as an advisor for the Teasley Middle School Interact Club, which encourage students to take on community service projects. She's also a member of the Service League of Cherokee County, which raises money to help less fortunate children in the community (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app).

This is the 21st year of Georgia Trend magazine's list honoring Peach State residents under the age of 40, the company said in its news release. These honorees, the magazine adds, not only excel in their day-to-day professions, but "also have a commitment to community involvement that goes well beyond what they are paid to do."

Those who made the cut this year represent a broad range of industries, including business, government, healthcare, science, education and the arts. The youngest of this year’s honorees is 22 while the oldest is 39.

Another Canton resident -- Kristi Estes, 39, -- joins Dr. Reynolds on the list. Estes is the co-owner and occupational therapist at In Harmony Pediatric Therapy in Holly Springs.

This year’s group joins two decades of honorees, many of whom have gone on to great success and have had a tremendous impact on the lives of Georgians across the state. Previous honoree include chef and TV personality Hugh Acheson, Ron Clark Academy founder and New York Times bestseller Ron Clark, former U.S. Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey, and actor, producer, director and screenwriter Tyler Perry.

Nominations were open to the public and submitted via georgiatrend.com. Anyone who lives in the state of Georgia could be nominated for this recognition, as long as the person was under the age of 40 on Oct. 1, 2017. This year, Georgia Trend received more than 300 nominations. Final selections were made by the editorial staff.

You can view the complete list of the 2017 40 Under 40 honorees by clicking here.

Image via Georgia Trend magazine/Dr. Jennifer Reynolds