Jennifer Schrott: Teacher Of The Year At Round Rock's Fern Bluff Elementary

ROUND ROCK, TX -- Jennifer Schrott has been named Teacher of the Year at Fern Bluff Elementary School, district officials announced.

In an interview for a district profile, Schrott said the award was the culmination of a lifelong dream of becoming a teacher. When she was a little girl, she would assemble her stuffed animals as if they were students in a classroom and she was their teacher.

She's taught first grade at Fern Bluff for ten years, and is now the 2017 Teacher of the Year. She's come a long way from those days of instructing her stuffed animals in the make-believe classroom of her childhood.

“I never doubted making my imaginary school a reality and a career,” Schrott told district officials. “When I finally had my own classroom, it was my turn to make beautiful each child’s natural gift.”

Fern Bluff Principal Elizabeth Wilson said Schrott continually works to ensure her students stay engaged and happy in the classroom. The teacher also places a premium on instilling in her students the virtues of being kind.

“Jennifer Schrott is the type of teacher and employee that you want to clone,” Wilson said. “She works hard every day to the benefit of her students and our school community.”

For her part, Schrott explained part of her philosophy and approach to teaching: “When their gift is not reading, writing or math, I show them compassion and patience and find ways to let them engage in their natural gifts as much as possible,” Schrott said.

“School is not a choice for my students, but it is a choice that I make every day to make it bearable for them and to acknowledge and support them in whatever their natural gifts are.”

>>> Photo of Schrott surrounded by some of her students courtesy of Round Rock ISD