A Moretown Kindergarten teacher is one of three finalists up for consideration to be Vermont’s 2027 Teacher of the Year, according to the Vermont Agency of Education.
The agency last week announced the three contenders for the annual honor: Moretown teacher Pamela Dow, along with Linda McCuen, who teaches high school English at Proctor Junior Senior High School, and Dawn Walls-Thumma, a middle-grades humanities teacher at Coventry Village School.
Since 1964, the agency has bestowed the honor as a way to recognize outstanding teachers in Vermont. The process begins each spring with nominations where anyone can nominate a teacher. The agency received 20 nominations from students, parents and fellow educators around the state, according to the agency announcement.
Fifteen nominees went on to submit applications that were reviewed by a panel that included eight past Vermont Teachers of the Year. The panel then selected the three finalists. The overall winner, who will serve as Teacher of the Year for 2027, will be announced later this fall.
LEARNING COMMUNITY
In her application, Dow noted that she’s taught at Moretown for more than 30 years, working with the school’s youngest students from preschool to second grade. Dow described her approach in the classroom: “I believe in intentionally creating a curious learning community,” she wrote, explaining that she values connecting students to the natural world and their community, stressing literacy and fostering resilience.
Dow said she is proud to have helped establish the school’s outdoor education program, Educating Children Outdoors, in 2011. It continues today in collaboration with the North Branch Nature Center and local naturalists.
“We use our school forest and surrounding land to engage children in organic, inquiry-based learning, allowing students to blossom in ways that traditional classroom settings simply cannot,” Dow explains. “I am constantly inspired by the resilience and creativity of the students I work with, and I look forward to continuing to support their growth.”
