Two local teachers made it to the top 10 in the district level of this year’s Jefferson County Board of Education competition.

Jennifer Carter Burns, a third-grade teacher at Gardendale Elementary, and Rodney Ragland, a math teacher at Bragg Middle School, were both honored March 2 during a ceremony at the Carraway-Davie House.

Jennifer Burns

A 1989 graduate of Auburn University and a 2004 graduate of UAB, Burns has taught at Gardendale Elementary since 2004. 

Her school activities include chairing her school’s Handwriting Without Tears, after school tutoring, membership in the BBSST Committee and AMSTI support group as well as  the Turn off TV Week campaign coordinator. 

In addition, Burns headed up a class project where students collected stuffed animals for Haitian victims of the January earthquake.

Burns is completing her National Board Certification.

She won Teacher of the Year for Gardendale Elementary in 2009.

Rodney Ragland

After receiving his bachelor of science degree from the University of Montevallo and his master’s degree from UAB, Ragland taught one year at Berry Middle in Hoover before moving to Bragg in 2002.

In 2006, he achieved National Board Certification and is now a candidate support provider for National Board candidates.

He presented at the Transforming East Alabama Math Conference and serves as a math support teacher for the Greater Birmingham Mathematics Partnership.

The Jefferson County Board of Education’s district winners were Jennifer Edwards, a third grade teacher at Hillview Elementary School, who was named the top elementary candidate, and Pamela Davis, a math teacher at Bottenfield Middle School, who was named the secondary candidate.

The two teachers will advance to the next level of competition, the congressional competition. Sixteen winners from there will be named to compete at the state level.

In May, the Alabama Teacher of the Year for 2010 will be named.