Once again, a Chesterfield teacher wins Region 1 title

Carolyn Wilkerson worried yesterday that something was wrong when she heard her principal's serious tone over the intercom asking teachers to take all 1,100 students to the gym.

Wilkerson, a math and science teacher at Tomahawk Creek Middle School in Chesterfield County, couldn't have imagined what happened next.

Top county school officials announced that she had been chosen by the state as central Virginia's 2010 teacher of the year.

"I was shocked," she said later yesterday.

This is the second year in a row that a teacher in Chesterfield was selected as teacher of the year for Region 1, which includes the counties of Chesterfield, Henrico, Hanover, Charles City, Dinwiddie, New Kent, Goochland, Powhatan, Prince George, Sussex and Surry and the cities of Richmond, Petersburg, Colonial Heights and Hopewell. Last year, Nicole C. Winter of Cosby High School won the Region 1 title.

"The educators recognized today inspire and encourage students every day while challenging them to reach higher and strive for excellence," Patricia I. Wright, state superintendent of instruction, said in a written statement.

Now, Wilkerson will be one of eight teachers from across the state to vie for the 2010 Virginia Teacher of the Year, to be named next month.

Wilkerson graduated from Chesterfield's Midlothian High School and earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Virginia and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Richmond.

She worked as an engineer before enrolling in U.Va.'s Gateway to Teaching Career Switcher Program to become a teacher.

"I joke that I went through a midlife crisis," she said. "I just thought I could be more valuable teaching kids."

Wilkerson began teaching seven years ago at Swift Creek Middle School. She moved to Tomahawk Creek Middle when it opened two years ago.

"She's beloved by everybody here, the students and the faculty," Assistant Principal Kathryn Kirk said. "She comes out to every sporting event. When we ask for volunteers, she's the first one to raise her hand to help out."

Wilkerson said she participates in her students' activities to get to know them and their families outside school.

"The time you spend doing that reaps benefits when you're trying to teach them in the classroom," she said.

Contact Juan Antonio Lizama at (804) 649-6513 or .