"Of the Year” award finalists announced for Evening of Excellence ceremony

Gaston County Schools is pleased to announce the finalists for its “Of the Year” awards for 2025-2026: Teacher of the Year, Principal of the Year, Assistant Principal of the Year, New Teacher of the Year, Teacher Assistant of the Year, and Central Office Administrator of the Year.

The winners will be announced during the annual Evening of Excellence awards ceremony on Thursday, May 1 at Stuart W. Cramer High School.  Anyone in Gaston County Schools is welcome to attend the awards ceremony, which begins at 6:30 p.m.

Again this year, the Evening of Excellence program is presented by Truist with additional partnership support from the Gaston County Education Foundation and Courage Kia in Gastonia.

Below is a list of the “Of the Year” award finalists (listed in alphabetical order):

■ Teacher of the Year
Kathryne Lavender, Pleasant Ridge Elementary School
Elizabeth Leonard, North Gaston High School
Bridget Matzke, Highland School of Technology
John Ramos, Forestview High School
Karmen Teague, South Point High School

■ Principal of the Year
Josh Allen, South Point High School
Laura Clark, W.A. Bess Elementary School
Rebecca Huffstetler, East Gaston High School
Donna Kelly, Rankin Elementary School
Jaime Wallace, Brookside Elementary School

■ Assistant Principal of the Year
Carmin Adams, Pinewood Elementary School
Jenny Carper, Highland School of Technology
Charlotte Friday, W.A. Bess Elementary School
Deon Kennedy, Mount Holly Middle School
Logan McGuire, Bessemer City Middle School

■ New Teacher of the Year
Alyssa Eckard, Ashbrook High School
Jamie Harris, Page Primary School
Richard Morris, Forestview High School
Emily Parris, Cherryville Elementary School
Arianna Weber, Page Primary School

■ Teacher Assistant of the Year
Catherine Cox, Springfield Elementary School
Melanie Dellinger, Brookside Elementary School
Christi Jolley, W.P. Grier Middle School
Lee Washington, Robinson Elementary School
Angela Yount, Lowell Elementary School

■ Central Office Administrator of the Year
Karen Archer, Academic Services
Susie Bradley, Student Support Services
Scott Cassell, Technology Support Services
Sarah Rector, Academic Services
Leigh Smith, Human Resources

The finalists/winners are chosen through a nomination and judging process that includes an application/resume; voting by colleagues; principal/supervisor recommendation; interview with a panel of judges made up of current and retired educators, business representatives, and community leaders; classroom observation (if applicable); and recommendation from Human Resources.     

Click here to watch last year’s Evening of Excellence awards ceremony.