Davis Education Foundation -

Twenty-One Teachers. One Morning. A First for Secondary Schools.

The Excellence in Education Award has recognized outstanding elementary teachers in Davis School District for years. This year, for the first time, it expanded to junior highs and high schools — and last Thursday, a lot of teachers got a very good surprise.

On the morning of March 5, three teams hit the road. Each group included Davis Education Foundation staff, the DEF executive director, and representatives from the You Are the Heart Murdock Family Foundation. By the time everyone was back, 21 teachers across 14 schools had been recognized in person.

What this award is actually about

This award is not about test scores. It is about growth. Every year, Utah measures how much students improved compared to other students who started the year at the same level. A teacher whose students grew more than most — not just scored well, but actually improved — is doing something worth celebrating.

The honorees below are the teachers in each school whose students grew the most. The growth score in the table is a number out of 100 — the higher it is, the more their students outpaced similar students across the state. Two teachers at Woods Cross High scored in the 90s, which means their students grew more than roughly 90 out of every 100 comparable students in Utah.

A great score tells you where a student is. Growth tells you what their teacher made possible.

Three teams, one morning, every school

Getting to 14 schools in a single morning takes some planning. DEF staff split into three teams and mapped out routes across the district. The executive director joined one group. You Are the Heart Murdock Family Foundation representatives were out in the field as well, which meant the people funding the award were there to give it in person.

At each school, teachers were called in — sometimes mid-class, sometimes between periods — to hear the news. Some had no idea. A few had been tipped off. Either way, the reaction was the same everywhere: real surprise and genuine gratitude.

The people behind the award

This award exists because of the You Are the Heart Murdock Family Foundation. They have supported teacher recognition in Davis District for years, and expanding it to junior highs and high schools this year was a natural next step. Great teaching does not stop at 6th grade.

Secondary teachers carry a lot. They teach bigger groups, harder content, and students who are going through some of the most complicated years of their lives. When a teacher in that environment manages to move the needle for dozens of students — sometimes more than a hundred — that is worth showing up for.

Behind every one of those numbers is a classroom where students went further than expected.

Teachers who show up for your kids

Davis School District serves more than 72,000 students. In a district that size, it is easy for good work to go unnoticed. Davis Education Foundation exists in part to change that — to make sure teachers who are genuinely moving the needle for students hear that someone noticed.

This year's secondary award deliveries were a simple thing, when you get down to it. Three groups of people drove from school to school, walked into a hallway, and told a teacher: we saw what you did for your students, and it mattered.