Milton Alan Turner, President
French and Spanish Teacher, Saint Ignatius High School

2019 Teacher of the Year

We are pleased to announce that Angela Gardner of Ross High School has been named the 2019 Ohio World Language Teacher of the Year. The Teacher of the Year Award is designed to recognize very accomplished language teachers that follow best practices, both state and national standards, as well as proficiency guidelines. The Teacher of the Year portfolio submitted by applicants consists of letters of recommendation from a supervisor, a current student, and a current/former parent. Applicants must also include a Curriculum Vitae/Resume; a five-hundred-word personal statement on the value of learning languages and developing cultural competence for all learners; samples of student work that reflect the goals of the State and National Standards for Learning Languages; a video of the candidate teaching of 15-20 minutes; and an interview with the Teacher of the Year Selection Committee.
Angela has taught Spanish at Ross High School since 2007 and currently serves as department chair. Her principal and superintendent praised her hard work and professionalism through her many efforts which include: service learning, having her student work published in magazines, starting a National Spanish Honor Society chapter, leading student trips, and developing policies on international student travel. Angela earned a BA in Spanish from Longwood University and an MA in Teaching from Grand Canyon University. She has served on the OFLA Board as the AATSP representative and currently serves as the Public Relations and Advocacy Chair.
In her personal statement, Angela asserts “The question in the modern era is not one of whether there is merit in language and cultural learning, the question in the modern era is where we need to start building a new language program or expanding an existing one, today, so that more citizens can enjoy and reap these benefits as soon as possible. Allons-y! ¡Vámonos! Let’s go!”
As Ohio’s Teacher of the Year, Angela will represent OFLA at the Central States Conference in Columbus March 14-16. Please join us in congratulating Angela and wishing her luck at Central States!

Central States 2019

We look forward to seeing you in Columbus for the 2019 Central States Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages/OFLA Conference March 14-16, 2019 at the Hilton Downtown Columbus. The theme for this year’s conference is “Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges, Promoting Proficiency.” You can register for the conference at the Central States web site at https://csctfl.wildapricot.org/Central-Connection-2019-Conference-Preview. To take advantage of the low conference rate which includes free in-room Wi-Fi, you can make hotel reservations at: https://book.passkey.com/event/49639130/owner/9521521/home