For the fourth year in a row, America First Credit Union and the Vegas Golden Knights honored teachers in the Clark County School District with a special award.
The Game-Changer program awarded four outstanding teachers who made a positive impact in the classroom and in the lives of students each with a $1,000 grant that will help to improve their classrooms.
Winners were celebrated with a private lunch gather at Citi National Arena, the Knight’s practice facility in Summerlin, after a celebratory luncheon in their honor.
Winners include:
Melissa Finnan of Grant Sawyer Middle School
Finnan goes out of her way to make all students feel like family. She created a giving box with shampoo, soap, toothpaste and toothbrushes in her locker room so students could take anything they need at home. With the grant, she will continue to provide anything she can for her students to make them feel at home.
Stacye Tesh of Bozarth Elementary
Tesh was nominated for her unwavering dedication to her first- and second-grade autistic students. She is just one of 54 national board-certified teachers in Southern Nevada for special education, and continues to attend lectures and seminars online to further her knowledge about her practice. Tesh’s main goal with her students is to teach them basic behavior skills to join their peers in general education classes.
Shane Goffstein of Wayne Tanaka Elementary School
Goffstein encourages each of his first-grade students to realize their potential. He creates reading groups during the pandemic and focuses on improving his student’s different reading levels. He uses his personal funds to ensure that students have all the resources needed to succeed.
Sasha Jones of Jerome Mack Middle School
Jones runs an exceptional drama program for grades six through eight. In a year where being face to face with students was challenging, she went above and beyond the call of duty for her students. Her drama and anime club gained a ton of traction this year through interactive, virtual events like streaming movies, television shows, and “live performances” of other theater departments across the district. Jones even used her own money and resources for lighting, sound and décor for her theater space.
The credit union will accept new nominations around the start of the 2021/2022 hockey season.
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