Shorecrest High School Teacher Honored as ‘Symetra Hero in the Classroom’

Bellevue-based Symetra Financial and the Seattle Seahawks honored Shorecrest High School teacher Jennifer Etter as a “Symetra Hero in the Classroom” on Sept. 23 during a special school assembly, according to a Symetra press release.

Etter is a ninth-grade teacher at the Shoreline high school.

“Jennifer Etter successfully combines what teens need to learn in school and in life in a classroom environment of mutual respect, where learning is cool. I admire a teacher who can turn on a light in a teen’s brain, all the more remarkable when the subjects are English, grammar, Shakespeare and poetry,” said Susan Garber Yonts, the parent of two of Etter’s students. “Ms. Etter lays out a difficult coursework syllabus, but her investment in her students is clear. These are freshmen girls and boys, who over the course of the year walk out of her class as they should — a little exhausted, a lot challenged and proud of their accomplishments.”

Garber Yonts nominated Etter for the Symetra Hero in the Classroom award. 

“Jennifer Etter demands and receives excellence,” added Garber Yonts. “She instills a sense of confidence at a time when self-esteem and self-confidence are hard to come by and equally cherished. She does this at the entry-level of high school so that the kids understand early that their investment is in themselves, not her, and is something that will pay off for the remainder of their high school years and into their adult lives.” 

Etter is one of 24 K-12 teachers across the Puget Sound area who will be honored for educational excellence in the Symetra Heroes in the Classroom program during the 2011 NFL season. Teachers are recognized in front of their students and peers at surprise in-school presentations, where they receive tickets to a Seahawks home game. They also are acknowledged during an on-field presentation at CenturyLink Field.

Etter was recognized at the Sept. 25 game when the Seahawks took on the Arizona Cardinals.

Teachers may be nominated by their principal, district staff, student or student’s parent. The winners are selected based on their ability to balance the core curriculum with students’ individual needs; build trust among students, parents and the community; and invest in their students’ long-term success.

In addition to honoring exceptional teachers on and off the field, each of the schools represented by a 2011 teacher Hero is eligible for an MVP Award, which provides funding to enhance learning in Seattle-area schools. Three $10,000 grants will be awarded at the end of the 2011 football season.

More information about Symetra Heroes in the Classroom is available at www.symetra.com/heroes.