Oakland County Honors Teacher Linda Carlson

West Bloomfield resident Linda Carlson was among 51 educators honored at the 24th annual Oakland County Outstanding Teacher of the Year Awards.

Carlson was nominated for the special education work she does in fourth- and fifth-grade classrooms at She has been teaching in the Bloomfield Hills School District for the past 22 years and enjoys working with her students and seeing their growth.

In addition to being nominated for this award, Carlson noted she has previously been nominated twice for the Bloomfield Hills Special Education award, the Golden Apple Award. Recently, she has been added to the Diversity Task Force for the metropolitan area.

Teachers representing 18 school districts throughout Oakland County were recognized as nominees for the award. Winners were announced at the end of March and were on hand Thursday evening to give insight into what receiving this prestigious award has meant to them.

“It was really nice to hear some good news about education tonight,” said Johnny Borg, physical education teacher at Ferndale Elementary School who was nominated for the  Oakland County Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award.

Blazo, Walker, McCartney win Teacher of the Year

The 2011 Oakland County Outstanding Teacher of the Year Awards at the elementary, middle and high school levels went to Bobbie Blazo, Chris Walker and Amanda McCartney, respectively. All three were awarded $2,000.

Blazo, a Novi resident who teaches at Beechview Elementary School in Farmington Public Schools, noted during her speech that she tries to really show up in her classroom. According to Blazo, it is necessary for teachers to not just to show up and do their job, but to actively participate with their students and be there for the small and big moments.

Walker earned the honor for his work as a math teacher at White Lake Middle School. Principal Paul Gmelin, who introduced Walker at Thursday's event, explained in sport terms that he is the MVP, all-star team captain and fan favorite at the school.

McCartney was honored for her work with autistic children at Walled Lake Central High School. “I teach for a very selfish reason: to learn from my students,” she said.

It was a sentiment many of the educators who were nominated for the award seemed to relate to.

The Walled Lake Central High School string quartet and choir performed for the audience before the nominees and winners were introduced.

After the nominated teachers received their certificates, the audience was treated to a video of the reactions of Blazo, Walker and McCartney as each learned he or she had won the top honors. The presentation, produced by Oakland Schools Technical Campus Southwest visual imaging students, included students' input about each of the three educators.

“When I judge, I look through the nomination forms for the ones that paint a picture,” Shelley Rose, director of communication services at Oakland Schools, said about judging the incoming nominations. “These teachers deserve every accolade and acknowledgement they receive.”

Each teacher honored was nominated by a colleague, parent or student. Only three teachers can be nominated for each participating district. A selection committee, on which Rose serves, then scores the nominees based on criteria including ability to engage students, school community involvement and knowledge of subjects taught, among others.