Teacher Appreciation Week begins Monday, but four Utah County educators already are being recognized for their work in providing a compelling learning experience in their respective classrooms.

The Utah State Board of Education has announced this year’s recipients of the Sorenson Legacy Awards for Excellence in Arts Education, with three of the five teachers receiving the honor coming from Utah County.

Also, the Utah State Society Daughters of the American Revolution honored its Outstanding Teacher of American History recipient last weekend during a state conference in Salt Lake City.

The USBE’s annual Sorenson Legacy Awards highlight the role the arts plays in Utah’s schools and recognizes educators who demonstrate excellence in their dedication to incorporating the arts into their teaching practices, according to a press release.

The award is named after Beverley Taylor Sorenson, a Utah educator who advocated for arts programs and curriculum in elementary schools. Sorenson died in 2013 at the age of 89.

The following teachers will be recognized:

• Elementary Arts Integration, for the Classroom Teacher: Rachel Leber, Provo School District.
• Elementary Arts Instruction, in Dance, Drama, Music, Visual Arts, or Media Arts: Charlotte Hawkins, Cedar Ridge Elementary School in Alpine School District (visual arts).
• Secondary Arts Instruction, in Dance, Drama, Music, Visual Arts, or Media Arts: Laurie Anderson, Timberline Middle School in Alpine School District (visual arts).

Each winner and their respective school district will be awarded a cash prize sometime within the coming weeks.

Recipients will receive a $2,000 cash award. The districts will be granted a $250 cash award to further support their arts programs.

Skyridge High School teacher Camille Pickett took home the Utah State DAR’s Outstanding Teacher of American History Award. Pickett was nominated and sponsored by the Pony Express Chapter in Lehi.

The organization describes Pickett’s teaching approach as engaging in active participation, critical thinking and civil dialog, and it said she encourages a sense of good citizenship in her students.

Pickett “went above and beyond what I have seen any other teacher do,” Pony Express Chapter Regent Valerie Hunt said in a press release.

Pickett previously was awarded the 2022-23 Skyridge High School Teacher of the Year Award and the Alpine School District RISE Award also in 2022.

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