Jason Futch
reporter2.riverbendnews@gmail.com
On Thursday, March 13, educators and staff members with the Hamilton County School District came together to honor their 2025-26 Teachers of the Year (TOY) and School Related Employees of the Year (SREOY) at the district’s annual awards banquet. The festivities were held at The Glass & Slipper in Jennings.
School Superintendent Lee Wetherington-Zamora opened the event with words of thanks to all in attendance, along with the TOYs and SREOYs from the 2024-25 school year. After Wetherington-Zamora’s words, the invocation was provided for the food, followed by a chicken and turkey dinner that was served to those in attendance. The food was provided by the Hamilton County School Nutrition Association and served by the Hamilton County Future Farmers of America.
Following dinner, the presentations began, with awards being handed out.
The first award presented was the Hamilton County Elementary School (HCES) SREOY, which was awarded to Sonya Gandy. Principle Kathy Griffin and Assistant Principals Charles McCoy and Erica McCoy presented the award. “She is the backbone of the school,” Griffin said of Gandy. “She is always there to support teachers, staff, students and our concessions. We would not be able to do any of this without Ms. Gandy.”
The second award presented was the Hamilton County High School (HCHS) SREOY. HCHS Principal Ryan Mitchell and Assistant Principals Scott Connelly and Stephanie Pierce presented the award. The award was presented to paraprofessional Kaitlynn McCoy, who was unable to be present for the event. “I’m very proud to have her represent Hamilton County High School,” Mitchell said. “We are delighted to accept this award on her behalf and will make sure she gets this award.”
The third SREOY award was presented to a district employee. April Perez, Director of Business Services, presented the District Office award to District Internal Accountant Katie Ginn, who was praised for her tireless work keeping the books accurate. She also took home the Overall District SREOY award, which was presented by Zamora.
The fourth award was the General Services SREOY award, presented by James Cohen, District Coordinator of Transportation, to school bus driver Mary Emory. Cohen noted that Emory would be retiring at the end of the school year and would be terribly missed.
Following Zamora’s SREOY presentation, the awards moved on to the TOYs. The first award was presented to Mandy Dempsey, who teaches at HCES. “Dempsey made a lot of strides in our student achievement,” Principal Griffin said. “The third graders that she taught along with her team broke a record by having the highest gains in proficiency, and also had the lowest level of Level 1’s in the school’s history.” Griffin also shared that Dempsey has been a role model to other teachers coming in and that she is always helpful to those who seek her guidance.
Upon winning the District TOY title, Zamora said of Dempsey, “You are truly an educator with children, and you have a true heart for ensuring that they are well taken care of. You give, and I so sincerely appreciate you giving to our children.”
Following HCES, HCHS presented its TOY, Raven Merine. Merine, who teaches eight-grade science, was presented with the award by Principal Mitchell. “When you see her, you see what inspiration is in a person,” Mitchell said. “Mrs. Merine comes to work every day and brings her absolute best, and she gets the best out of her students.”
Prior to Zamora’s presentation for District TOY, which went to Dempsy, Calena Clemons, 2024 District Teacher of the Year, provided the keynote speech before the group of attendees, thankful for the opportunity to serve as District TOY for the previous year.
