The 51-year-old second-grade teacher at Dilworth Elementary in Salt Lake City was named 2009 Teacher of the Year by the Utah State Office of Education on Friday night.
She was chosen out of a group of 24 teachers, each nominated by their district or school.
"I have all this natural beauty running down my face," Gallagher-Fishbaugh joked wiping away tears as she accepted her award Friday night during a ceremony at the Embassy Suites hotel. "I want to thank all of you for being an example to me as to what great teaching is about." She taught special education for five years before moving to her current position at Dilworth.
Kenneth D. Limb, principal at Dilworth, said Gallagher-Fishbaugh is loved by parents and students. "She is a professional in her relationships with all, but exudes love, compassion and high expectations from students and parents," Limb said.
As the honoree, Gallagher-Fishbaugh received a $10,000 check from the Utah State Office of Education, a classroom wireless microphone system, a computer and a full scholarship in a degree program offered through Walden University. Gallagher-Fishbaugh will represent Utah in the competition for the National Teacher of Year in Dallas, and will travel to Washington, D.C., to meet President Bush.
"I'm overwhelmed, honored, and very humbled by this," she said. "When you look around, you see these people are committed to students, committed to teaching . . . really, truly, I'm only the teacher I'm because of all the work we do together." Gallagher-Fishbaugh is a National Board Certified Teacher and a finalist last year for the Huntsman Award for Excellence in Education She said the award will give her the opportunity to get the word out about what teachers do and the excellent profession teaching is. Two other teachers were also honored at the ceremony. Crystal Fish, a math teacher at Hillcrest Junior High in Murray, was named first runner up to the award and received a $5,000 check. Karen H. Gorringe, sixth-grade teacher at Bluffdale Elementary in Jordan School District, was the second runner up and received a $3,000 check. "I'm proud to be a teacher in Utah," Gallagher-Fishbaugh said. "We have the best teachers in the country in our state. What we do, nobody does it better."
