Ga. Teacher of the Year back home for a day in Houston County

WARNER ROBINS -- With just a couple months left before her term as Georgia Teacher of the Year ends, Amanda Miliner hasn’t lost her drive to return to the classroom.

“I’m excited to get back,” she said. “I’m ready.”

That doesn’t mean she hasn’t relished her experiences since winning the honor. Miliner, formerly a fourth-grade teacher at Miller Elementary School, has spent the past several months touring the state, delivering workshops, presentations and speeches for her fellow teachers.

She’s also visited plenty of schools, which is what brought her back to Houston County on Monday. As part of a “very busy” schedule, Miliner visited Miller, Westside and Northside elementary schools.

“A lot of travel, but it’s been a great experience because I’ve been able to see education through a lot of different lenses,” she said.

As a teacher in the classroom, she said it was easy to feel isolated and think there wasn’t much support for educators. Over the last 10 months, though, she’s seen that’s not the case.

“I think the biggest surprise for me ... is how many different entities there are supporting educators,” Miliner said.

One such entity is the governor’s office, where Pam Williams works as the education outreach coordinator, helping moderate the Distinguished Educators and Learners page on Facebook to recognize teachers and schools across the state.

Williams also attended Miliner’s visit on Monday, explaining that the purpose of such trips is “to thank teachers for being in education and making a difference in Georgia.”

Miliner’s personality is key to that effort, she said.

“She is just awesome, spreading her enthusiasm,” Williams said. “Her attitude is contagious.”

Board member Rick Unruh stopped by Northside Elementary to visit classrooms alongside Miliner. He said the event was good for the teachers and the county as a whole.

“Obviously, it’s a great thing for her to be able to come and do this,” Unruh said. “I think it invigorates the teachers that get visited.”

Third-year art teacher Adrienne Bickel was one of those teachers. While many of the classrooms visited were filled with students, Bickel was preparing for a class, but Miliner stopped by to check out her students’ work.

She said having Miliner touring the state in such a role provided great publicity for Houston County.

“I think it’s amazing that she’s able to come back,” Bickel said. “She shows us in a wonderful light.”

As her term comes to an end in May, Miliner will now turn her sights back to the classroom. This time around, she’s armed with new information and tactics she’s gathered from across the state.

In one classroom, she saw a teacher use Skype to communicate with a Thomas Jefferson re-enactor about his “role” in the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

“What I think I’ve really seen in the classroom is how teachers have implemented technology so seamlessly,” she said.

One concern, though, will be where Miliner will actually work when she comes back this summer. Since she took a year’s sabbatical to fulfill her state duties, her position at Miller had to be filled. Even though Miliner was open to the prospect of working at another school in the county, Unruh didn’t think that would be an issue.

“Pretty sure Miller’s not going to let her go,” he said.

This story was originally published March 9, 2015 at 4:28 PM with the headline "Ga. Teacher of the Year back home for a day in Houston County ."