Tacoma educator named 2016 Washington Teacher of the Year
Lincoln High School’s Nathan Gibbs-Bowling is the new Washington state teacher of the year.
The annual announcement was made at a ceremony Monday at the Experience Music Project in Seattle.
Gibbs-Bowling, who teaches AP government and human geography at Lincoln High School, was one of nine teachers from around the state nominated for the award. He will spend this school year traveling the state, meeting other teachers, and serving as a voice of education. In April, he will travel to Washington D.C. to take part in the national Teacher of the Year competition and visit the White House.
"I'm not the best teacher in my school," he said while accepting the award. "I'm not even the best teacher in my own house."
Gibbs-Bowling is married to Hope Teague-Bowling, a teacher also at Lincoln. He was quick to credit his family, his wife, his Lincoln colleagues and principal, and Tacoma community.
All nine of the state Teacher of the Year nominees spent the weekend together, asking questions and learning from each other.
“Everybody up here is an amazing teacher,” Gibbs-Bowling said of the nominees.
The nine regional winners, in addition to Gibbs-Bowling, for the 2016 Washington Teacher of the Year are:
- Alecia McAdams-Sing, Lakeside High School, Nine Mile Falls School District
- Joyce Stark, Sunnyside High School, Sunnyside School District
- Bethany Rivard, Fort Vancouver High School, Vancouver School District
- Maegan Skoubo, Raymond Junior Senior High School, Raymond School District
- Theresa Holland-Schmid, Kingston High School, North Kitsap School District
- Omar Escalera, McLoughlin Middle School, Pasco School District
- Ashley Leneway, Morgan Owings Elementary, Chelan School District
- Michael Werner, Granite Falls High School, Granite Falls School District
Read more about the 2016 Washington Teacher of the Year and Regional Winners