Nikolaevsk School teacher Billeen Carlson has been named 2022 Teacher of the Year by the Alaska Society for Technology in Education, the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District announced in a press release last Friday.

ASTE President Bill Burr said in the press release,“We were honored to celebrate Billeen as the ASTE Teacher of the year. She is a true example of the power of teaching for her students. She is moving education forward by giving students choice and voice.”

“I am thrilled that Ms. Carlson was named the ASTE educator of the year,” said Superintendent Clayton Holland. “Ms. Carlson brings a high level of enthusiasm and a willingness to step in and help students and staff from across the district with remote instruction and the use of technology to maximize the effectiveness of instruction and learning. Congratulations to Billeen on this much deserved recognition!”

Educated on the Southern Kenai Peninsula from elementary school through college, Carlson attended Chapman School (1990) and Homer High School (Class of 1994), earned an Associate of Arts degree in English from Kenai Peninsula College (2004), and a Bachelor of Arts in History (2010) and Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) for Secondary Education with a social studies focus (2012) from the University of Alaska Anchorage. She started her teaching career in 2008 as a substitute teacher, then after earning her MAT, began in 2017 teaching as a secondary (grades 6-12) teacher at Nikolaevsk School.

“I was surprised to receive this award,” said Carlson in the press release. “Our district is full of experienced, technologically savvy educators who put students first. Of the team who attended ASTE, most presented on tools and strategies to the statewide audience. As far as districts in the state, the Kenai was the most highly represented. As a district, we should be proud of our level of educational competency.

“I love the challenge of working with diverse groups of students in challenging environments,” she added. “The pandemic shut down provided me the opportunity to leverage my technology skills to the benefit of my students and colleagues. I also enjoy working with students to personalize their learning experiences and to help them meet performance standards in non-traditional ways. With all of the chaos and hardships surrounding education in the last couple of years, I have been blessed with the right skills, the right mindset and the right level of resiliency to rise above our challenges.”

Photo provided Nikolaevsk School teacher Billeen Carlson, center, shows her Alaska Society for Technology in Education Teacher of the Year award.