Happy Teacher Appreciation Week to all our Kettering City Schools teachers and staff, and to all our alumni teachers across the globe! ❤️ We love hearing all the great stories about how teachers have had a positive impact on your lives, and we're sure you'll enjoy the heartwarming memories below from your fellow alumni! 

Mary D.Creamer - 5th grade teacher at Rolling Fields School
Submitted by: Valerie Anzalone Baker

Tell us a little bit about this Kettering City schools teacher and your experience with this person.
We had spelling words each week. The best one was responsibility. She did a whole bulletin board about the word. Not only did we learn to spell it but we had to live the meaning of the word. I learned about how I was responsible for my actions, good or bad!

Brief description of why this teacher is deserving of recognition.
She was a caring and loving teacher! She was a teacher no one wanted because she was tough and expected great things from her students.

What is something this teacher said or did that really stuck with you?
Taught me what responsibility was about!

How did your favorite teacher help you grow as a person?
I became a responsible adult and passed this life lesson onto my own children.

Melissa King - History Teacher
Submitted by: Alana Crider

Tell us a little bit about this Kettering City schools teacher and your experience with this person.
Melissa King is the most thoughtful, empathetic, compassionate, and loving person in the world. She puts her students first and quickly fills those voids missing in the lives of all of her students. Her classroom was a safe place for me and was my home away from home. When I was with Ms. King she would talk me through all of the hardships of my life. She was a listening ear, and frequently a shoulder to cry on. Life isn’t fair and I was dealt many hard things but she never failed to love me and to encourage me through every hardship, including mental health struggles. She greeted me with a beautiful smile every day and reminded me that I was beautiful and that I have a purpose in this world. She will NEVER know how she changed my life. That broken high school student who was having a hard time finding her place in the world is now studying to be a social worker to impact the lives of her clients the way Ms. King did for her.

Brief description of why this teacher is deserving of recognition.
Melissa is a humble woman who would never ask for recognition. She deserves to be celebrated from the mountaintops. In my years at Fairmont alone she changed the lives of so many students. She even bought groceries for a student multiple times. She would never boast about her works as she just has a beautiful heart! Not only does Melissa advocate for her students, but she does the same for her daughters. Her youngest daughter has Alopecia and every single year she puts together a 5K to raise awareness and to bring those together who are fighting this devastating diagnosis. Melissa is a light in this world and deserves the world!

What is something this teacher said or did that really stuck with you?
Melissa would often write me notes or cards to encourage me on even the hardest days. My parents were going through a nasty divorce and on Valentine’s Day that year she wrote me a card and reminded me that while my relationship with my mom wasn’t great she loved me and cared about me.

How did your favorite teacher help you grow as a person?
Melissa always encouraged me to be humble, kind, and compassionate. She always encouraged me to take the higher ground and stand up for injustice. She taught me that it was okay to seek help for my mental illness and that I wasn’t any less of a person for needing help. She was one of the first safe people in my life who I could confide in. She reminded me of my strength and pushed me towards my goals of completing high school and earning a college degree. When I would turn to things that were not good for me she would encourage me to turn the other way and to seek care from her and other supports in my life. We are STILL in contact today (7 years later) and she still loves me the same way today as she did seven years ago. I know I could call her any time and she would be there!

Amy Dunaway-Haney - Spanish Teacher
Submitted by: Ethan Bistline

Tell us a little bit about this Kettering City schools teacher and your experience with this person.
Señora Haney was extremely invested in not just my success, but the success of every single one of her students. Not a day went by where she was unwilling or unable to hear me vent about what was happening in my life. She was a tough lady, assigning so much homework and a ton if projects, but I feel this was 100% necessary to ensure that we reached our full potential and learned Spanish the most effectively.

Brief description of why this teacher is deserving of recognition.
Señora Haney has sadly passed now, but to this day, I still think about and thank her for everything she did for me. I mean no offense to all the other teachers I had in high school, but Señora Haney, to this day, even through 4 years of college, was the best and most devoted teacher I’ve ever had the privilege of knowing. The amount of work and dedication she put into her job is something that definitely should be acknowledged.

What is something this teacher said or did that really stuck with you?
I student assisted for Señora Haney a couple years in high school, and during these times, she would ask me my plans for the rest of my life, how my life was at the time, and if there was anything troubling me. I also suffer from Celiac Disease, meaning I can’t consume gluten, and I remember the class having cake one day where I thought I wouldn’t be able to have anything. But, I got to class that day and she had bought, with her own money, a gluten free cake just for me and one of her other students. That has stuck with me.

How did your favorite teacher help you grow as a person?
Señora Haney often included videos, lectures, short articles, and more about Hispanic culture and life. To this day, I continue to respect and admire many Hispanic traditions and aspects of the culture. Plus, I believe much of the Spanish I was taught by her has still stuck with me for the last 8 years, and I think I could still hold a conversation in Spanish, even if it was a little awkward on my part.

Beth Hann - Chemistry teacher
Submitted by: Jacob Mora

Tell us a little bit about this Kettering City schools teacher and your experience with this person.
Mrs. Hann was a great teacher I always enjoyed her classes. She had the perfect mix of science and fun. She was very understanding on late work and always attempted to help me get caught up when I fell behind.

Brief description of why this teacher is deserving of recognition.
She is overall my favorite science teacher that I've ever had. Her materials science class was so fun and I learned a ton as well.

What is something this teacher said or did that really stuck with you?
She truly loved what she taught and always said that no matter how much you get payed you should always do what you love.

How did your favorite teacher help you grow as a person?
She helped me understand what career path i might want to go on with her information on what job fit my interests well.

Mr. Heading - Math teacher
Submitted by: Emma Thompson (was Timberlake in high school)

Tell us a little bit about this Kettering City schools teacher and your experience with this person.
Mr Heading was one of the best teachers I had. To begin, he was my teacher during the passing of our classmate, Caine Jones (who was in the class with us). He handled it with such grace and compassion. A specific memory I want to share comes from my junior year of high school (2018-2019). I had a string of illnesses that caused me to be out of school on and off for over a month. He was extremely flexible with my work, but that isn’t the point I want to focus on. My boyfriend, Chris Thompson (now husband) was planning to ask me to prom in a special way. He wanted to cover my entire car in sticky notes, and write “prom?” On the windshield with a different color sticky notes. On a day I was out sick, Mr Heading spent time with the whole class, researching the make and model of my car, and had everyone calculate how many sticky notes were needed to cover my car. After hearing about it, it made me feel so special and cared for. It was just a very kind gesture and a fun activity for the class to do. It meant a lot to know that he cared about it so much.

Brief description of why this teacher is deserving of recognition.
Mr Heading is so kind, compassionate, and caring. He is very intelligent at what he does, and makes his students feel heard and cared about.

What is something this teacher said or did that really stuck with you?
When our classmate Caine Jones committed suicide, he told us, “no words will be adequate for the situation happening. But what I can say is that you are all loved and cared for. Please know I am here for each and every one of you, and you are all important.”

How did your favorite teacher help you grow as a person?
He helped point me in the right direction by showing us how to be kind, hardworking, and determined. I don’t have a photo with Mr Heading, but I have photos of the sticky notes on my car that I’d like to share!

Richard Wright - Orchestra Director
Submitted by: Julia Slusher

Tell us a little bit about this Kettering City schools teacher and your experience with this person.
Mr. Wright was my orchestra teacher from 2006 through 2013. He helped me develop an understanding and appreciation for the arts that I carry to today. But more than that, he brought such a warm presence and comfort to our daily lives through orchestra class. Middle school is awkward and high school was tough, but Mr. Wright was always there to keep you grounded and remind you that the best years are ahead not behind. Orchestra was a general reprieve from the daily hustle of classes but Mr. Wright made it even more fun and engaging.

Brief description of why this teacher is deserving of recognition.
To know Mr. Wright is to love him and appreciate the joy, love and support he brings to all of Kettering City Schools. He helps student recognize their value and worth during very challenging times. His kindness and authenticity is unmatched and I'm grateful to have had him as my teacher.

Amanda VanDyke - Biology & Biotechnology teacher at Fairmont High school, she is retired now.
Submitted by: Alex Adams

Tell us a little bit about this Kettering City schools teacher and your experience with this person.
She was my advisory teacher throughout high school (2009-2013) and then my Biotechnology teacher for my junior and senior year.

Brief description of why this teacher is deserving of recognition.
At the end of middle school and the beginning of high school, I felt stuck in a depression that greatly impacted my schoolwork. I didn’t put a lot of effort or cared very much about my grades, Ms. VanDyke however did not give up on me. She pushed me and got me to join Biotechnology where I really felt like I grew as a person and finally came out of my shell. My grades skyrocketed those last two years and I went on to attend Wright State and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Biological Sciences. I owe Ms. V a lot for helping me get back on a path that set me up for my life. She was an amazing teacher and person and never gave up on any of her students.

What is something this teacher said or did that really stuck with you?
She pushed me to become a better version of myself and did not give up on me. I originally wanted to join Allied Health for career technology and did not get in, and that really put me in a bad place, especially that the teacher at the time told me I would never even get into college because of my grades. Ms. V approached me and asked if I wanted to join Biotechnology and that was the best decision I could have made at that time. I really flourished once joining.

How did your favorite teacher help you grow as a person?
She helped me realize my potential and found a career path that I loved. All of her lessons and experiences she gave us helped shape me into the person I am today. I am forever thankful to her for helping me find myself at a very vulnerable time in my life.

Amy Snyder - Special Education Coordinator
Submitted by: Allie Beach

Tell us a little bit about this Kettering City schools teacher and your experience with this person.
I thought I wanted to be an intervention specialist before Amy was mine, but then 8th grade happened. Amy’s first year of being an intervention Specialist. She literally did whatever she could to make sure I was successful. She believed in me more than I believed in myself. I am indebted to Amy. She made 8th grade one of my favorite years in KCS!

Brief description of why this teacher is deserving of recognition.
She’s the definition of going above and beyond for her students.

What is something this teacher said or did that really stuck with you?
She truly loved what she taught and always said that no matter how much you get payed you should always do what you love.

How did your favorite teacher help you grow as a person?
She helped me understand what career path i might want to go on with her information on what job fit my interests well.