Lakeport >> When Clear Lake High School teacher Kristi Tripp was informed that she’d been selected as a Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction, she was definitely caught off guard. “I think as teachers — and I think this is true for most if not all teachers — we don’t think of that,” Tripp said. “We don’t really expect that kind of gratitude or accolade.”
The award was even sweeter because it was Tripp’s pupils who had nominated her. Each year students in the National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS) have the opportunity to select an educator who has contributed significantly to their academic growth and career. The award recognizes those teachers’ efforts. “It was really heartwarming that a student or students felt strongly enough about what I helped them with that they wanted to go to all the trouble to nominate me,” Tripp said.
Though she moved to Lake County in 1988, Tripp began teaching at Clear Lake High School in 1999. She keeps busy, teaching numerous subjects — Senior English, Advanced Placement Literature and Composition, Leadership (the class produces the school newsletter as well) and Humanities (also the academic decathlon team). While it’s quite a bit to juggle, Tripp said she’s “very fortunate” to work for the high school.
Ever humble, Tripp feels she doesn’t go above and beyond what her coworkers do for their own pupils. “I think that all teachers impact their students. I think we all care, these particular students just felt extra grateful,” she said. “I think that all teachers are out there trying to make a difference in students’ lives and I think that all teachers do make a difference in students’ lives.”
Being a teacher is its own reward. When a student’s face lights up, when they grasp a difficult topic and experience that “ah ha” moment, when they swell with pride, it’s the best thing about the profession. It makes standing in front of a whiteboard each day worthwhile. “It’s the students that make teaching actually the richest profession in the world,” Tripp said, choking up as she held back tears.
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
