Camille Jacobie
Camille Jacobie encourages her sixth-grade students at Lake Highlands Middle School to set lofty goals, and she does the same for herself. She’s on a quest to become America’s Favorite Teacher and win a school assembly for her kids with the ever-popular Bill Nye the Science Guy.
It won’t be easy.
Jacobie is currently running sixth against other outstanding educators from around the country. Last year’s winner, Jonathan Koch, has a “surfer dude” look, with long, wavy hair and tattooed arms. He shifted from extreme sports to teaching and now inspires fourth and fifth-grade students in Newark, New Jersey. In this year’s poll, Jacobie is rising fast, and she’s equally deserving.
Jacobie says she’s known she wanted to become a teacher since her own days in middle school. Her mom was a teacher who loved her students and considered them part of the family.
“I loved exploring new concepts and always loved helping others,” she shared on the AFT website. “I also knew the impact my teachers had on me, and I wanted to share that experience with students.”
Jacobie recalled a field trip during her early teaching days when a hard-to-reach student enjoyed an “aha moment.”
“I saw her eyes light up after hearing from pilots and being in a cockpit,” she said. “We talked on the bus on the way home and she said she really thought she wanted to be a pilot. I told her that in order to do that she needed to pay attention to science, social studies, and math. She said, “If that’s part of it, I will focus on working hard!”
If Jacobie wins, the Bill Nye presentation won’t be her only reward. She’ll be featured in Reader’s Digest, take a trip to Hawaii and receive $25,000.
“I will use some of it for a family vacation, because teaching takes away from family time,” she said. “I will also use some of it to continue doing the Positive Behavior supports program I am involved in at my school.”
Your first daily vote is free. After that, you may vote up to 250 times daily by making a $1-per-vote donation to the Planetary Society.
Voting continues here until March 26. The winner will be announced in June.
