Melissa Matz of Clay County is Florida's 2023 Teacher of the Year
Melissa Matz, a seventh-grade teacher from Clay County, was named the 2023 Florida Teacher of the Year at a banquet in Orlando Thursday evening.
A math teacher at Lakeside Junior High School in Orange Park, Matz beat out Jennifer Jaso and Deelah Jackson from Sarasota and Manatee counties, respectively, to win the statewide award.
The Florida Department of Education made the announcement at the Teacher of the Year Gala at the JW Marriott Grande Lakes in Orlando in front of each district's teacher of the year winners and their families. Matz received a $20,000 bonus, and will be able to give one of her students a two-year college scholarship through the Florida Prepaid program
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She will also serve one year as the Christa McAuliffe Ambassador for Education for the state. Each of the five finalists for the award received a $15,000 bonus from the DOE, with the winner receiving an additional $5,000.
Finalist for Florida's 2023 Teacher of the Year in Southwest Florida
Two finalists work just 20 miles from one another in Southwest Florida. Jackson, 50, is a fourth-grade teacher at Samoset Elementary School in Manatee County. Jaso, 42, is a sixth-grade social studies teacher at Sarasota Middle School.
Jaso has taught social studies in Sarasota County since the 2007-08 school year and won the county's teacher of the year award in 2022. She has served as the social studies department chair at Sarasota Middle and is a presenter at the National Council for the Social Studies Annual Conference and the Florida Council for the Social Studies Conference.
“There are few who match Jennifer’s content-knowledge expertise, her innate passion for her craft, and her love of, and commitment to, working to educate and improve the lives of children from every background,” said Jennifer Nzeza, principal of Sarasota Middle School, in a May press release.
Jackson has taught at Samoset Elementary since the 2015-16 school year, and she won the Manatee County Educator of the Year award in February. She has helped coach the school's robotics competition team and is the site director for the Extended Day Enrichment Program, an after-school program.
This is a developing story, check back for updates.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Department of Education names 2023 Florida Teacher of the Year
