In and Out of Classroom, County Teacher of the Year Gets It Write

A Ventura elementary school teacher with a passion for writing was named Ventura County’s Teacher of the Year on Monday.

Lorrie Nelson, a fifth-grade teacher at Poinsettia School in Ventura, giggled when Ventura County Supt. of Schools Chuck Weis surprised her with the news.

“Wow! Oh my God!” Nelson said. “This is really exciting.”

The 36-year-old Nelson will represent the county’s 6,500 teachers in a statewide competition next month.

Nelson’s selection was based on her professional skills, commitment to education and community involvement. Earlier this year, she was honored by Ventura Unified School District officials for being one of the top educators in the district.

On Monday, Nelson’s students complimented her sense of humor and her energy. Her fellow teachers praised her creativity and compassion. And Poinsettia Principal Nancy Bradford called Nelson an extraordinary teacher.

“She’s one of a kind,” Bradford said. “She really empowers kids to motivate themselves.”

Nelson started her career in education 11 years ago at De Anza Middle School, where she taught for four years. She also taught at Mound and Serra schools before coming to Poinsettia three years ago.

She grew up in Whittier and received her bachelor’s degree from Occidental College. She started law school but decided during her first year that she wanted to be a teacher instead.

“It was my calling,” she said. “And it was the right thing to do--absolutely right.”

So she applied to UCLA, where she earned her master’s degree and teaching credential.

She said Monday that she likes being a teacher because each day is different and a constant learning experience.

“I love being with the kids,” she said. “I learn from them every day.”

When she is not teaching, Nelson kayaks, hikes and spends time with friends.

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During class Monday, Nelson’s voice resonated with enthusiasm, and her smile seemed to comfort her anxious students. Her classroom is decorated with their colorful work and her motivational sayings: “Writing is life work, not desk work,” one poster reads.

Nelson spends much of her free time promoting writing in the schools by serving as a mentor to fellow teachers and leading writing workshops for her colleagues throughout the county. She also started a local chapter of the National Writing Project, a professional organization of writing teachers.

She was selected to participate in a program to write curriculum on promoting tolerance in the schools. And she is working on her own children’s book about a boy who watches the moon.

“I believe if you are going to teach writing, you have to be a writer,” she said. “I really think our test scores could go up if teachers took risks, wrote with their kids and really learned about the writing process.”

At Poinsettia, Nelson created a program called “Family of Writers,” which brings children and parents together to compose stories and poems. She said the monthly gatherings not only enable children and parents to become better writers, but also help them learn more about one another.

Carolyn Becker said Nelson has inspired her 10-year-old son, Evan, to want to write creatively. “She’s just such a positive person,” said Becker, who also teaches at Poinsettia. “She loves teaching and she loves the kids. She’s phenomenal.”

Ten-year-old Mikelle Briggs said Nelson is fun. “When I first came into this class, Ms. Nelson was crazy and funny,” Mikelle said. “I know I’m gonna like her.”

Each school district is invited to nominate a teacher for the countywide Teacher of the Year award, and the Ventura County superintendent of schools office makes the final selection.

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Steve Blum, president of the Ventura Unified Education Assn., said Nelson’s selection was an honor for the entire district. A Ventura teacher has won the countywide competition six of the last 10 years. Last year’s honor went to Oxnard High School history and geography teacher Robert Bornemon.

Nelson said she is thrilled with the honor. “And I’m not representing just me. I’m representing the whole county,” she said.