THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 26, 1995 TAG: 9511260072
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: POPLAR BRANCH LENGTH: Long : 120 lines
Sheila K. Grandy had a lot of notions about education when she embarked on a career in teaching 21 years ago.
``When I came out of college, I really had this idea that it would sort of be like Socrates,'' she said, of the Greek scholar who captured his students' full attention when he spoke.
``I had just enjoyed learning so much, and I just thought these 25 little people would sit there and absorb the information,'' she said.
She was wrong.
Grandy quickly realized she'd have to change her way of thinking in order to reach a developmentally diverse class of second-graders. The methods she's mastered have served her well.
She has been named as the Currituck County Teacher of the Year.
The W.T. Griggs Elementary School teacher will vie with 20 others next month for the regional title during screening interviews at the Northeast Technical Assistance Center in Williamston. The state program is 26 years old.
Last year's regional teacher came from Edgecombe County. The year before it was Dr. Reid Rhodes of Dare County, who also fared well in the statewide competition, said Russell Johnson, the lead instructional specialist with the Northeast center.
The soft-spoken Grandy, who once attended Poplar Branch's Griggs school as a student and has taught there for about 10 years, said she was up against tough competition.
Other county schools' teachers of the year included Jane Wysor of Moyock Elementary, Christine Arnold of Knapp Junior High, Carol Frazier of Central Elementary, Jayne Fentress of Knotts Island School and Sherry Richardson of Currituck County High.
Nancy C. Jones, the state's first Teacher Assistant of the Year about five years ago, was again honored at Central Elementary and at the county level. Other outstanding assistants were Moyock's Gwen Daughtrey, Knotts Island's Jan Morgan and Griggs' Margaret Alline.
Faye Freeman, who runs the Knotts Island school, was named Principal of the Year.
All of the teachers and assistants were selected by in-school voting, and a screening committee selected the county's top educators after interviews.
``It's a very special person, I think, that has their peers think so much of them,'' said Currituck County Board of Education Chairman Mary Ellen Maxwell at a special presentation this month.
Grandy was born in Portsmouth, Va., and was raised in Florida, where she enjoyed exploring her natural surroundings in Tampa.
She didn't, however, decide to teach until she became a College of The Albemarle student in 1970 and discovered she enjoyed working with people.
Until then, the shy woman believed research was her calling.
``I guess with teaching, you end up doing most of that, but it's more hands-on experience rather than just sitting back as an observer as most researchers do,'' she said recently during a break in her class schedule.
In 1971, she married Tommy Grandy and they moved to Greensboro, where Sheila graduated cum laude from the University of North Carolina.
She eventually earned a master's degree at East Carolina University in 1985.
By then the family included Thomas Ashley, now a high school junior.
Tommy Grandy is an agricultural agent in the county's extension office.
As a teacher at Griggs and, before then, at Central, Grandy has stressed the importance of empowering children to search for their own answers, rather than memorizing them from a text or lecture.
She quotes the Chinese proverb: Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach him to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.
``Having a purpose makes a tremendous difference,'' she said.
Some programs she's helped organize during her years at Central and Griggs schools include:
An annual ``Pet Day'' at Central that teaches the study of mammals by bringing animals into the school.``Even though we live in a rural community, many children have never held a live animal,'' she said.
``T.V. Busters,'' which encourages students and parents to turn off televisions and tune into family life.
A time capsule at Griggs to be unearthed in 2010. The project underscores history lessons.
An aluminum can drive that raised several hundred thousand dollars for a local fire station.
``Wee Deliver,'' a Griggs in-school postal service that helps hone writing skills while improving communication skills. Grandy's past classes also corresponded with students in Scotland, enhancing cross-cultural awareness.
The list of special projects goes on and on, but Grandy said she is particularly proud of instilling a lifelong commitment to learning in her students and setting a good example for her peers.
``I believe all children can learn if they feel accepted as individuals having their own unique abilities, and if they are given the chance to be risk-taskers in a nurturing, safe environment conducive to learning.
``A good teacher knows her learners and moves them forward by sparking that innate desire to learn. I also take seriously my responsibility to share this knowledge, with all of its more complex processes, with my teaching colleagues.
``This, I feel, is one of my greatest contributions to education,'' Grandy wrote in her professional biography. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
DREW C. WILSON/The Virginian-Pilot
``A good teacher knows her learners and moves them forward by
sparking that innate desire to learn,'' Currituck County Teacher of
the Year Sheila K. Grandy wrote in her professional biography.
Graphic
Other winners
Bertie: Barbara Jean Parker of Southwestern Middle School
Camden: Linda B. Mathias, Camden Middle School
Chowan: Susan Harrell Brickhead, White Oak Elementary
Dare: Dallas M. Gray Jr., Manteo Middle School
Hertford: Ron Lane, Hertford County High School
Hyde: Aleta S. Cox, Davis Elementary
Northampton: Eric A. Ryan, Northampton-East High School
Pasquotank: Melvin Leland Hawkins, Northeastern High School
Perquimans: Tanya Turner, Perqwuimans Central School
Gates: Faye Lane Freeman, Buckland School
Tyrrell: Sharon Moore Cooper, Columbia High School
by CNB