Camron Bradford is nominated Teacher of the year on Thursday, Feb 4. Students and parents nominated their favorite teacher on an initial ballot, and the top five candidates advanced to the final round of voting. From there, Bradford won the popular vote.
“It was very surprising,” Bradford said. “And more than anything, I was excited at the fact that people cared that much to even vote for me, that I was in the running with the people that I am in the running with.”
Bradford’s fellow Teacher of the Year candidates include Leadership and AP Government teacher Stephanie Lopez, AP Statistics and Calculus teacher Wrendy Oseguera, AP Human Geography teacher Lordez Santiago, and English Two teacher Cornelia Patterson.
Bradford teaches English One, a freshman class. He prides himself off of his ability to build meaningful connections with his students and teach students lessons both inside and outside of the classroom.
“My favorite thing about being a teacher is being in relationships and inspiring students to actually grow and learn and challenge themselves,” Bradford said.
Not only does Bradford enjoy connecting with students in his own class, but he makes an effort to connect with the entirety of the student body. Bradford believes that building relationships with students outside of his class has a positive impact on the campus as a whole.
When Bradford found out that he was voted Teacher of the Year, he couldn’t believe it.
“I was excited and shocked, but I was more appreciative than anything, because I didn’t feel as if it was true, it was real,” Bradford said. “It’s too good to be true, not me!”.
As exciting as it was when Bradford found out he won this honor, the real reward came when Bradford saw his students. Students hand painted a long poster outside his classroom and were overjoyed at his victory.
“They were so excited and so proud, and I could tell that students really pushed for this to happen,” Bradford said.
Going forward, Bradford plans to teach with a new passion for students and is honored to receive the title of Teacher of the Year.
“It makes me feel like I’m making a big impact on not just my students, but the campus in general,” Bradford said. “It makes me want to go harder, it makes me want to make sure that other students are heard and seen.”
