Four of the nine finalists for the University of Arizona Athletics High School Amazing Teachers of the Year are Vail teachers!
A huge congratulations to Empire’s Michelle Tozer, Mica Mountain’s Kim Farr, Andrada’s Tiffany Newton, and Cienega’s Cristina Parks.
Teachers are evaluated on innovative practices, student achievement, extracurricular involvement, leadership, community service, and more! Way to represent the Vail School District - we are so proud of you!
Tiffany Newton - Andrada Polytechnic High School
Tiffany Newton has always been a chemistry nerd. Colloidal gold nanoparticles fascinated her! While teaching Chemistry is her love, she has taught just about every math and science course possible. She currently teaches Chemistry, Dual Enrollment Chemistry, and Forensic Science at Andrada. She even worked to get her Forensic Science course approved to count as a lab science by the NCAA and the AZ Board of Regents. It now counts as a science credit for her students! Tiffany’s mantra is, “science is something you do, not something you learn.” She keeps her students engaged by starting with the phenomenon and using science to figure it out. A favorite of her students is using chemistry to solve hypothetical murder cases! The number of students taking a fourth year of science at Andrada has skyrocketed as a result of her work.
Cristina Parks – Cienega High School
Cristina Parks started in Vail as an Occupational Therapist working with elementary students. She found her love for special education and went back for a few teaching degrees in Special Education and served as a special education inclusion specialist when Cienega was in its infancy. She has since merged her two loves of education and special education as Cienega’s CTE Early Childhood Education teacher and has watched as the program has exploded from just a few classes to a bursting SIX courses. Her students get to practice what they study, develop, and create with Vail’s youngest students at Vail Inclusive Preschool. Students in both programs are producing incredible results as a result of Cristy’s critical work… not to mention that her work feeds the education profession. Many of Cristy’s former students are now serving as educators!
Michelle Tozer – Empire High School
Michelle Tozer is a beloved Empire teacher! She taught biology and earth science before launching the anatomy and physiology and honors anatomy and physiology programs there. There was a dire need as Empire had launched its CTE Nursing Program. She has been teaching Biology and Anatomy and Physiology ever since. She loves to connect science topics to real life with her students. After all, biology and anatomy are literally the study of real life. In her anatomy classes, she does case studies with her students. They recently did a case study of a real college student with skin cancer and looked into tissues. Her favorite unit to teach is the nervous system where her students do brain dissection and learn about drug effects on synapses! She is known by her colleagues for her incredible ability to ensure all students have equal access to the curriculum!
Kim Farr – Mica Mountain High School
Kim Farr is perhaps one of the most humble rock star teachers in Vail. In her 17 years in Vail, she has taught biology, earth science, Advanced Placement Environmental Science, Honors Earth Science, Freshman Physics, Honors Freshman Physics, Advanced Placement Human Geography, and Advanced Placement Research. And, due to a recent resignation, she picked up Cienega’s Advanced Placement Research students to ensure that those students who are so close to earning their AP Capstone Diploma have the opportunity to do so. She’s all about providing the highest quality of opportunities for her students including coaching swimming and traveling the world with students every couple of years to Costa Rica, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, and Belize!