Suzanne Knowlton, a special education teacher at Sunflower School, has been named Lawrence Schools Foundation’s Teacher of the Year.

Knowlton was presented with a $1,000 check during the foundation’s annual fundraiser, the Foundation Follies, on Friday at Liberty Hall.

Sheryl Simmons, a paraeducator at Sunflower, said Knowlton’s “: energy reserves seem bottomless. She never gives up on a student and has an uncanny ability to always pull something from her bag of tricks to bring the learning challenge within the grasp of the student.”

A teacher for the past 26 years, Knowlton has been in Lawrence since 1993.

Roughly 500 people attended the follies. The event raised about $25,000 for early-childhood education, teacher grants, leadership development and student scholarships.

“It was very successful,” said Mary Esau, executive director at the Lawrence Schools Foundation.