Presbyterian College alumna Jennifer Ainsworth, Horry County Schools’ Teacher of the Year, was named the South Carolina Teacher of the Year on April 23, 2014 during a gala in Columbia. The 1994 PC graduate made history as the first educator to bring that title home for Horry County Schools. Jennifer Ainsworth is a special education teacher in Socastee High’s class for students with mild to moderate disabilities, ages 14 to 21, who learn academics, work skills, and life skills.

Jennifer and other finalists were selected from 81 school districts, the South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Palmetto Unified School District, and the South Carolina Public Charter School Districts South Carolina’s Teacher of the Year. All the finalists went through personal interviews with a seven-member state selection committee. During the 2014-15 school year, Jennifer will participate in a one-year residency program at the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention and Advancement and will serve as a statewide ambassador for the profession.

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