Hasty Elementary Art Teacher Named Top 10 Georgia Teacher of the Year Finalist

SUBHEAD: Dr. Lisa Spence was surprised with the news in her own classroom, surrounded by her students.

BYLINE: Woodstock Wire Staff

SOURCE: [CCSD News - Cherokee County School District](https://www.cherokeek12.net/post-detail/~board/all-locations/post/ccsd-teacher-of-the-year-named-top-10-state-finalist)

Out of more than 115,000 educators teaching in Georgia's public schools, a Cherokee County art teacher has earned a spot among the 10 best in the state.

Dr. Lisa Spence, an art teacher at Hasty Elementary School Fine Arts Academy, was surprised Tuesday with the announcement that she is a Top 10 finalist for Georgia Teacher of the Year, learning the news right there in her own classroom, her students watching as the moment unfolded around her.

The photos from the announcement capture everything: Spence standing at the front of her art room, hand over her heart, surrounded by student work and the kind of walls that only a dedicated art teacher builds over years, bold posters, colorful murals, a student-painted homage to Van Gogh's "Starry Night" propped in the corner.

Spence had already earned the distinction of Cherokee County School District Teacher of the Year before advancing to the state competition, where she now stands among the top 10 finalists drawn from a pool that spans every public school district in Georgia.

For the students at Hasty Elementary, the recognition puts a name and a title to something they likely already knew.