Margaret Mead Elementary School Teacher Honored as 'Symetra Hero in the Classroom'

Symetra and the Seattle Seahawks honored Margaret Mead Elementary School teacher Stacy Jeremiah as a “Symetra Hero in the Classroom” on Nov. 23 during a surprise school assembly. Jeremiah teaches second grade at the Sammamish K–5 school.

“Stacy Jeremiah is genuinely interested in her students and their success. She takes the time to get to know each child — strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes,” said Allison Eidinger, a parent of one of Jeremiah’s students. “Classwork always comes home with a personalized note from Mrs. Jeremiah to my child about what he did well in that assignment. We also periodically receive surprise notes from her, on her own stationary, just to let us know something great my son did that week at school. He is so proud to share these with us, and we greatly enjoy hearing about what he is doing well, with tangible examples so we can help to reinforce that behavior.” Eidinger nominated Jeremiah for the Symetra Heroes in the Classroom® award.

“Mrs. Jeremiah demonstrates an interest in the student as a whole person,” said Eidinger. “She is known to show up at her students’ extracurricular activities. At one of my son’s recent soccer game, he looked up from the sideline to see her out there in the rain at 8 a.m. on a Saturday to cheer on his team. His eyes lit up, and he still talks about how special he felt that she came to support him. All of Mrs. Jeremiah’s students feel how invested she is in them. The sheer joy on the kids’ faces when she surprised them at that soccer game was priceless. They didn’t care if they won or lost — they were so focused on asking if she saw this shot or that pass.”

Jeremiah is one of 16 K–12 teachers across the Puget Sound area that will be honored for educational excellence in the Symetra Heroes in the Classroom program during the 2015 NFL season. Teachers are recognized in front of their students and peers at surprise in-school presentations, and they receive a $1,000 donation for classroom books and supplies. In addition, they receive tickets to a Seahawks home game and are acknowledged during an on-field presentation at CenturyLink Field. Jeremiah was recognized at the Nov. 29 game when the Seahawks took on the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Teachers may be nominated by their principal, district staff, student or student’s parent. The winners are selected based on their ability to make a real difference in students’ lives; to go above and beyond in their day-to-day responsibilities; and to help students build life skills.

More information about Symetra Heroes in the Classroom is available at www.SymetraHeroes.com/Seahawks.

About Symetra
Symetra Financial Corporation (NYSE: SYA) is a diversified financial services company based in Bellevue, Wash. In business since 1957, Symetra provides employee benefits, annuities and life insurance through a national network of benefit consultants, financial institutions, and independent agents and advisors. For more information, visit www.symetra.com.