Teachers Win $1,000 Grants From Georgia Power Company

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Canton, GA -- Two Cherokee County School District first-year teachers were surprised this week with $1,000 grants from Georgia Power Company.

Creekland Middle School science teacher Derek Tobin and Hasty Elementary School Fine Arts Academy second-grade teacher Taylor Johnson were visited in their classrooms on Tuesday by Georgia Power Area Manager Rod Drake, who presented them with New Teacher Assistance grants from the utility company.

The grants started 12 years ago to recognize outstanding first-year teachers and encourage them in their choice of profession.

Tobin and Johnson are both graduates of Kennesaw State University, and are two of the 41 teachers across Georgia selected for this year’s awards from Georgia Power. Candidates for the grants are submitted by the deans of the state’s public teacher colleges.

These institutions are asked to recommend up to 10 candidates, five men and five women. Candidates must be in the top 25 percent of their class academically, possess an aptitude for teaching and be recommended by education faculty members.

In addition to the $1,000 grant for projects in their classrooms, winning teachers also receive a scale-model Georgia Power bucket truck. Johnson said the award is especially meaningful to her, as her grandfather worked as a lineman and foreman for the company. Tobin added the presentation is quite timely for his students, as he is covering a unit on electricity in his science classes.

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Photo 1: Georgia Power Area Manager Rod Drake congratulates Hasty Elementary School Fine Arts Academy second-grade teacher Taylor Johnson on winning the company’s New Teacher Assistance grant.
Photo 2: Georgia Power Area Manager Rod Drake, right, visits Creekland Middle School eighth-grade science teacher Derek Tobin in his classroom to present a New Teacher Assistance grant from the company.
Photo credits: Cherokee County School District