Evening of Excellence
Dennis Zuercher from Gibbs High was named the 2025 Pinellas County Schools Teacher of the Year on January 27 at the annual Evening of Excellence hosted at the Hilton St. Petersburg Carillon Park by Pinellas Education Foundation. It was a memorable evening celebrating the best in education with heartfelt tributes for each Top 10 finalist.
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For event inquiries, please contact Kiersten Keely at 727-588-4816, ext. 2111 or [email protected].
“Teaching means building relationships with students, understanding their unique needs, and fostering an environment where they feel safe, valued, and motivated to learn. It is helping students reach their full potential by nurturing their growth and teaching them the skills they need to be successful.”
– Dennis Zuercher, 2025 Teacher of the Year
Watch the 2025 Evening of Excellence Video Recap Story
- 2024-25 Pinellas County Schools Teachers of the Year -
Elementary Schools
ANONA ELEMENTARY
Sophia Kanellopoulos
AZALEA ELEMENTARY
Kelly Hefty
BARDMOOR ELEMENTARY
Nancy Knight
BAUDER ELEMENTARY
Elizabeth Basley
BAY POINT ELEMENTARY
Ashlee Ford
BAY VISTA FUNDAMENTAL
April Bradley
BEAR CREEK ELEMENTARY
Melissa Shible
BELCHER ELEMENTARY
Vincent Trapano
BELLEAIR ELEMENTARY
Carrie Snyder
BLANTON ELEMENTARY
Christina Kelly
BROOKER CREEK ELEMENTARY
Jenelle Crim
CAMPBELL PARK ELEMENTARY
Brandy Ashby
CROSS BAYOU ELEMENTARY
Stacy Rouse
CURLEW CREEK ELEMENTARY
Natalie Steratore
CURTIS FUNDAMENTAL
Marcy Streicher
CYPRESS WOODS ELEMENTARY
Elizabeth Williams Hagn
DOUGLAS JAMERSON ELEMENTARY
Maureen Wilson
DUNEDIN ELEMENTARY
Debra Geary
EISENHOWER ELEMENTARY
Alison Tripp
ELISA NELSON ELEMENTARY
Cher Williger
FAIRMOUNT PARK ELEMENTARY
Ashley Carrington
FOREST LAKES ELEMENTARY
Christina Beaty
FRONTIER ELEMENTARY
Kerrie Danler Doughty
FUGUITT ELEMENTARY
Kendra Patterson
GARRISON-JONES ELEMENTARY
Suzanne Daily
GULF BEACHES ELEMENTARY
Jennifer Kelly
GULFPORT MONTESSORI ELEMENTARY
Dayna Petruccelli
HIGH POINT ELEMENTARY
Nicole Yakubovsky
HIGHLAND LAKES ELEMENTARY
Leslie Bembnowski
KINGS HIGHWAY ELEMENTARY
Lauren Piechota
LAKE ST. GEORGE ELEMENTARY
Jane Burgos
LAKEVIEW FUNDAMENTAL
Lawrence Fawcett
LAKEWOOD ELEMENTARY
Princy Dorsainvil
LEALMAN AVENUE ELEMENTARY
Sarah Murray
LEILA DAVIS ELEMENTARY
Kele McDonald
LYNCH ELEMENTARY
Janet Jackson
MARJORIE K. RAWLINGS ELEMENTARY
Richelle Faerber
MAXIMO ELEMENTARY
Emmerson Clarke
MCMULLEN-BOOTH ELEMENTARY
Ashley Mehr
MELROSE ELEMENTARY
Sheba Walker
MIDTOWN ACADEMY
Sarah O’Donoghue
MILDRED HELMS ELEMENTARY
Tara Levine
MOUNT VERNON ELEMENTARY
Carli McCrary
NEW HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY
Bobbie Borys
NORTH SHORE ELEMENTARY
Rachelle Davis
NORTHWEST ELEMENTARY
Amanda Johnston
OAKHURST ELEMENTARY
Marilyn Gars
OLDSMAR ELEMENTARY
Shana Wolff
ORANGE GROVE ELEMENTARY
Laura Kuenn
OZONA ELEMENTARY
Lyza Rutkoski
PASADENA FUNDAMENTAL
Christina McCartney
PERKINS ELEMENTARY
Kontonia Fowler
PINELLAS CENTRAL ELEMENTARY
Cynthia Bradford
PINELLAS PARK ELEMENTARY
Julie Sivon
PLUMB ELEMENTARY
Tina Hull
PONCE DE LEON ELEMENTARY
Dawn Coleman
RIDGECREST ELEMENTARY
Dorothea Anderson
SAFETY HARBOR ELEMENTARY
Sarah Hartranft
SAN JOSE ELEMENTARY
Amanda Clayton
SANDY LANE ELEMENTARY
Holly Mullenix
SAWGRASS LAKE ELEMENTARY
Dawn Golphin
SEMINOLE ELEMENTARY
Stacy Taylor
SEVENTY-FOURTH ST ELEMENTARY
Florencia Fouch
SEXTON ELEMENTARY
Karen Hubble
SHORE ACRES ELEMENTARY
Barbara Lewis
SKYCREST ELEMENTARY
Bonnie Ruby
SKYVIEW ELEMENTARY
Tamika Morris
SOUTHERN OAK ELEMENTARY
Andrea Ress
STARKEY ELEMENTARY
Miranda France
SUNSET HILLS ELEMENTARY
Suzanne Andropoulos
SUTHERLAND ELEMENTARY
Melissa Springer
TARPON SPRINGS ELEMENTARY
Jennifer Monteverde
TARPON SPRINGS FUNDAMENTAL
Alexandra Shontz
WALSINGHAM ELEMENTARY
Julie Christian
WESTGATE ELEMENTARY
Dana Wanek
WOODLAWN ELEMENTARY
Rebecca Dupuis
Middle Schools
AZALEA MIDDLE
Jacqueline Conroy
BAY POINT MIDDLE
Jamie Wade
CARWISE MIDDLE
Sonia Duggan
CLEARWATER FUNDAMENTAL
Brittany Fuller
DUNEDIN HIGHLAND MIDDLE
Melissa Forsythe
EAST LAKE MIDDLE
Cristina Fallara
JAMES B. SANDERLIN K-8
Daryn Bauer
JOHN HOPKINS MIDDLE
Erin Cardinal
LARGO MIDDLE
Richard Wells
MADEIRA BEACH K-8
Allison Thomson
MANGROVE BAY MIDDLE
David Villegas
MEADOWLAWN MIDDLE
Tarik Mowatt
MORGAN FITZGERALD MIDDLE
Chelsea Catarelli
OAK GROVE MIDDLE
Alyssa Jones
OSCEOLA MIDDLE
Jill Shircliff
PALM HARBOR MIDDLE
Sandy Reigel
PINELLAS PARK MIDDLE
Calvin Denecke
SAFETY HARBOR MIDDLE
Kayley Olles
SEMINOLE MIDDLE
Marissa Silkie-Rees
TARPON SPRINGS MIDDLE
Shanti Taylor
THURGOOD MARSHALL MIDDLE
Natasha Reed
TYRONE MIDDLE
Sophia Sansone
High Schools
BOCA CIEGA HIGH
Maxine Nicholas
CLEARWATER HIGH
Mallory Eline
COUNTRYSIDE HIGH
Barbara Carmichael
DUNEDIN HIGH
Judith Deeley
EAST LAKE HIGH
Dana Munson
GIBBS HIGH
Dennis Zuercher
HOLLINS HIGH
Elizabeth McGowan
LAKEWOOD HIGH
Christopher Borg
LARGO HIGH
Nicole Shroyer
NORTHEAST HIGH
Kem Mosley
OSCEOLA FUNDAMENTAL HIGH
Matthew Clay
PALM HARBOR UNIVERSITY
Kelli Griffis
PINELLAS PARK HIGH
Jessica Luty
RICHARD O. JACOBSON HIGH
Savannah Wilcox
SEMINOLE HIGH
Melissa Brandenburg
ST. PETERSBURG HIGH
Anita Green
TARPON SPRINGS HIGH
Joseph Priddy
WORLD LANGUAGES
Siera Seidl
Adult Education
CLEARVIEW ADULT EDUCATION
Angela Faiola
EDUCATIONAL ALTERNATIVE SERVICES
Timothy Mount
LAKEWOOD COMMUNITY
Victoire Heintz
PINELLAS TECHNICAL COLLEGE CLEARWATER
Regianae Zanardini-Rojas
PINELLAS TECHNICAL COLLEGE ST. PETERSBURG
John Lambert
Education Alterative Services
BAYSIDE HIGH
Keir Borresen
CALVIN HUNSINGER
Thomas Makowski
DISSTON ACADEMY
Devlin Pippert
LEALMAN INNOVATION
Regina Brown
PINELLAS GULF COAST
Dale Milne
PINELLAS HIGH INNOVATION
Lyndsay Barrow
PINELLAS VIRTUAL
Cara Hamrich
RICHARD L. SANDERS
Janet Canfield
Exceptional Student Education
NINA HARRIS
Ernest Lee
PAUL B. STEPHENS
Debbie Evans
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