The Annual Bishop Townshend Awards of Educator Excellence were
presented at an awards dinner to honour the recipients on Tuesday
February 21, 2006 at the Grosvenor Club. This award is jointly sponsored by OSSTF
District 11, the Anglican Diocese of Huron, and the Thames Valley District
School Board.
The Right Reverend William Alfred Townshend, for whom this award was
named, was a school board trustee for over 40 years and an ardent
supporter of public education throughout his life.
The criteria for selection of the recipient of this award are derived
from Bishop Townshend’s philosophy of education. He believed that
students must receive education in intellectual, physical, spiritual and
social realms if they are to live a more abundant life. The educator who
helps the student develop in such a rounded fashion would also demonstrate
excellence in the areas of physical, social, intellectual and spiritual
development.
The nominees for this award were selected by selection panels within
each school or workplace or bargaining unit because they exemplify those ideals.
This was the 26th annual presentation of these awards. The Bishop Townshend Awards originated in London, and since amalgamation has been
expanded to the whole District and to all of the Bargaining Units
represented by District 11–Thames Valley: the Teachers’ Bargaining
Unit, the Occasional Teachers’ Bargaining Unit, the Continuing Education
Instructors Bargaining Unit, and the Professional Student Services
Personnel Bargaining Unit.
The 2006 Award Recipients are: