The School District is proud to announce finalists for Manatee County’s Educator of the Year and Support Employee of the Year. This week, Superintendent Cynthia Saunders, along with representatives from Manatee Education Foundation (MEF), the School Board and School District Leadership, surprised eight exceptionally talented finalists for the 2023 Excellence in Education Awards. Educator of the Year Finalists: Tiffany Barrett-Greer, 2nd Grade Teacher at Braden River Elementary School, Kendall Carrier, Director of Bands (Music Teacher) at Parrish Community High School, Michelle Dowell, Biomedical Science Teacher at Palmetto High School, Kelly Smith-Williams, Anatomy and Physiology Teacher at Lakewood Ranch High School. Support Employee of the Year Finalists: Gena Case, Guidance Clerk at Myakka City Elementary School, Brianna Hall, Clerical Assistant at Lincoln Memorial Middle School, Marisol Hernandez, School Secretary at Braden River High School,Latisha Jones, Guidance Clerk at Southeast High School. The finalists will be honored, and the “Educator of the Year” and “Support Employee of the Year” will be announced at the Excellence in Education Awards to be held on Thursday, February 9, 2023, beginning at 7 p.m. at Parrish Community High School. The educator representative for Manatee County will advance to the Florida Teacher of the Year program, while the support representative will advance to the Florida School-Related Employee of the Year program.