photo by: Mike Yoder

Kelsey Stolt, an interrelated resource room teacher at West Middle School, reacts Tuesday after being recognized with the school district's secondary Lawrence Horizon Award. The award was presented by superintendent Kyle Hayden and is presented to an exemplary novice educator in their second year of teaching.

West Middle School teacher Kelsey Stolt arrived at work Tuesday morning fully expecting to attend an awards ceremony for another teacher.

What she didn’t expect was a crowd of two dozen colleagues and district staff, including Superintendent Kyle Hayden, gathered in a West classroom to honor her with the district’s annual Horizon Award instead.

“I thought this was for Laura,” a teary-eyed Stolt said after receiving the surprise award, eliciting laughs from the packed classroom.

LauraAnne Grammer, who teaches special education at West, was one of several colleagues to endorse Stolt, an interrelated resource room teacher, for the award, which is meant to recognize exemplary new educators in their second year of teaching.

Grammer wrote of Stolt’s “innovative” teaching style and her use of technology in the classroom to “make learning fun and accessible for all kids,” Hayden said during the ceremony.

Just before his retirement last spring, former West principal Myron Melton wrote to the superintendent, expressing his admiration for Stolt’s “professionalism” in the face of adversity and commitment to her students.

Stolt, who teaches functional skills to sixth- through eighth-graders enrolled in special education, put in “a lot of extra hours” during her first year at West, quickly establishing close relationships with her students, Melton wrote.

“You have a natural ability with students, setting high expectations for them and the staff to work with them and create a classroom that’s positive, fun and focused on meeting students’ needs,” Hayden said, quoting an endorsement from district special education facilitator Paige Buckingham.

In addition to the award, Stolt was also presented with a $250 check from Truity Credit Union. She and the district’s elementary-level honoree — expected to be announced within the next week — will be nominated for the Kansas State Department of Education’s Kansas Horizon Award program.

“I couldn’t be happier at West,” Stolt, at a loss for words, told her colleagues after receiving the honor. “Thank you, everyone. Thank you so much.”