HADDONFIELD, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — The 2019-20 “Teacher of the Year” in New Jersey will be making a long-awaited trip to the White House on Monday.
Kimberly Dickstein Hughes, an English teacher at Haddonfield Memorial High School, was supposed to be honored at a White House ceremony in April of 2020.
But the in-person ceremony was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“My recognition year has been the never-ending ‘Teacher of the Year’ year,” Hughes told KYW Newsradio.
“I am so grateful for it, but it’s also been this experience where I’m hanging in suspense.”
That suspense ends on Monday, she said.
“We have been informed that we are meeting both the First Lady and the President, and both the 2020 class and the 2021 class will be meeting at the White House with the current administration.”
The ceremony begins a week of meetings with lawmakers including New Jersey Senator Cory Booker.
“My students know that I am going there to work," Hughes said.
“Going to the White House, engaging in education policy, talking to policymakers and being a policy influencer, and being that model for my students, shows them that they can do this too.”
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“I think it is essential for our country to recognize good teaching, for our students and for our future,” Hughes added.
“We are painfully aware that we have a teaching shortage and the pandemic has certainly not helped that crisis, and so we must do everything in our power to celebrate the profession that is the birth of all professions.”
Her actions, Hughes hopes, will set an example for her students.
“I entered this profession because I not only wanted to help others but I wanted to be the best possible public servant.”
