The Bainbridge Island Kiwanis Club has selected Christine Fulgham as its 2013 “Educator of the Year.”
Fulgham is a family and consumer science education teacher at Woodward Middle School. She has taught on the island for 36 years.
Jim Snook, Kiwanis Club president, will present the award to Fulgham at the club’s breakfast meeting on Wednesday, June 19. Community members are invited to attend the 7 a.m. event, which will be held at the Wing Point Country Club.
“Woodward Principal Mike Florian, numerous parents, current and former students and several teachers and community leaders nominated Fulgham for this honor,” Snook said. “The many specific comments made about her superior teaching ability, outstanding classroom management and committed relationship with her students make her a truly worthy recipient of this year’s award.”
It is also significant that 62 of her students wrote individual nominating letters. One former student said, “Ms. Fulgham taught me so much. As well as what was in the curriculum, she taught me how to be a good person. She is one of the most kind-hearted people I have ever met and a true inspiration.”
Added another: “She will always be one of my favorite teachers. Her positive attitude is contagious.”
One of her students this year said, “Ms. Fulgham should be Educator of the Year because she puts a fun spin on learning. She also never leaves a student behind, and makes sure that everyone has full understanding of what is being taught.”
Her counterparts at Woodward also shared glowing tributes to the longtime educator.
A former Woodward teaching colleague of Fulgham said in her letter of nomination, “In the 36 years that Christine has taught, she has constantly retooled herself and the curriculum to meet the needs of the students. Most recently she applied to become a STEM teacher, working unimaginable hours to infuse science, technology, engineering and math into her lessons. In addition, as an awardee of a number of Fulbright scholarships, she has traveled widely, bringing the essence of far-flung cultures to her students to help them understand the world. She has also been involved in the Friends of the Farms cooperative on Bainbridge Island. From that experience she has delighted students with a garden outside her classroom that they lovingly plant, tend and consume.”
Fulgham was raised in Renton, and received her undergraduate degree at Central Washington University. She received her master’s degree in international education at Seattle University.
Kiwanis conducts the Educator of the Year award program annually to honor an educator who has made extraordinary efforts toward improving the education of Bainbridge Island children.
Besides recognition, the award includes a $500 check to the honoree, and an additional $500 to their school. Fulgham is the fifth recipient of the award.
