Lauren Eckman (left) receives the Georgia Teacher of the Year award from Superintendent John Barge (Courtesy facebook.com/gadoe

Lauren Eckman, a teacher from the Georgia Academy of the Blind, is the 2013 Georgia Teacher of the Year. For Eckman, this means she will be an advocate for public education across the state, addressing groups and potentially conducting workshops.

Learn more about Eckman and you realize why she deserves this honor. She began at the Georgia Academy of the Blind in 2004 as a student teacher. She felt called to stay, applied for a position and has been teaching there ever since.

One of the aspects of her application that stood out is that she has a 100% pass rate on the Georgia High School Graduation Writing test for much of the years she has been at the school. Her students have finished college with honors and obtained Master’s degrees. Many are in successful careers.

Lauren will compete for the 2013 National Teacher of the Year. We wish her the best of luck.