First of a two-part series honoring educators who go above and beyond
Tammy Dills - HMS
By Lorrie Ross
Staff Writer
Every year, the staff at each of the Clay County Schools, chooses one of their peers as Teacher of the Year. Staff from all of the schools selects the Clay County District Teacher of the Year. That person will represent Clay County Schools in the Regional Teacher of the Year interview process.
Four teachers have been chosen this year. Hayesville High School’s Teacher of the Year is Ellen Engelmann, while Hayesville Middle School is being represented by Tammy Dills. Kimberly Staten is Hayesville Primary School’s Teacher of the Year and Cayce Ledford has been named for Hayesville Elementary School.
In addition, two other staff members have been recognized by their peers, but they are not competing for Clay County District Teacher of the Year. Kelley Rogers-Gibby is Clay County Schools Exceptional Children Program Educator of Excellence and Rosemary Russo-Wells is the Teacher Assistant of the Year. This week, we focus on two teachers, Engelmann and Dills.
Engelmann has been a teacher at Clay County Schools for 11 years. She explained how her career path to teach art began.
She enrolled at Western Carolina University when she moved to Hayesville from Wilmington, N.C. An advisor at WCU helped her find her direction. “After realizing my love for art, she suggested I meet with Erin Tapley, who is the Director of the School of Art and Design and Professor of Art Education at WCU,” Engelmann said. “Once I got into the program I knew it was the right fit for me.”
When asked what she enjoys most about teaching art, she replied. “Watching students discover their talent for art. They have so much pride in their work.”
Engelmann shared a proud moment. “There are so many moments I have cherished over the years, but the highlight for me was last spring when two of my former students, who are now art majors at YHC, came and judged my art show,” she smiled. “It really made the whole process of teaching come full circle.”
She added, “Congratulations to Ashley Murray who just graduated from YHC with a double major in Art and Graphic Design.”
Engelmann and her husband, Karl Engelmann, have three sons Jade, Will and Byron. The family lives in Hayesville where they own Epic Catering and Eatery and recently added Mel’s Place.
“My vision as an art teacher is that students will realize they are creative beings capable of making artwork that can be shared and appreciated and that they may also view the artwork of others and realize its intrinsic value,” she ended. “Whether they make a career in the art world or if it is a hobby, I believe the process of creating art in all forms unites us as humans.”
Hayesville High School principal Stacey Overlin feels Engelmann’s award is well-deserved.”Mrs. Ellen Engelmann is a fantastic Art teacher who knows how to work with students of all talents to help them take their work to the next level,” he said. “She is always a team player in our school and goes above and beyond for our students. Ellen is respected by everyone and we are so pleased she received this recognition from her peers.”
Hayesville Middle School Physical Education teacher Tammy Dills received the HMS Teacher of the Year award. Dills is a Hayesville High School grad from the class of 1990. She graduated from Mars Hill University with a Bachelors of Science in Physical Education and Health for K-12 in 1995.
“I was very fortunate to obtain a job at my alma mater,” Dills said. “I began in August of 1995 and have continued to be a part of Clay County Schools, so at the end of this school year I will have 28 years under my belt here at CCS.”
Several Clay County teachers helped influence her to become an educator. “During my elementary years, I had some wonderful teachers, but some that stick out to this day in my head are Betty Anderson, Mac McCorkle, and Doretha Jones,” Dills said. “I feel I learned some important traits from each. Mrs Anderson taught me to always include others and to have a kind heart. Mr. McCorkle taught me never to second guess yourself. He always said, ‘never go back and erase your gut instinct answer because normally a person’s instinct is always right.’ Mrs. Jones taught me learning could be fun, but at the same time competitive. I wanted every scratch and sniff sticker you could get. This in turn instilled my love for learning my multiplication facts and loving math.”
She continued, “Then, in Mr. Mickey Powell’s eighth grade class, my classmates and I were each recorded predicting and saying what we wanted to be when we grew up. They played these video interviews during our senior graduation. My prediction was spot on. I said, ‘I want to come back to Hayesville and be a physical education teacher and coach.’”
She enjoys how teaching physical education offers something different every day. “I enjoy seeing students succeed when they felt like quitting,” she said. “I feel like I’m there to help push and pave that path of ‘You can do this, don’t quit. Push harder.’ These are life lessons and traits used every day in our class to help each and every one of our students realize they can do anything they set their mind to. In turn they need these lessons before going out in the real world.”
She also enjoys the people she works with. “A person’s work environment is a huge part for a person to enjoy their jobs,” she said.
When asked about a cherished memory, she laughed. “I could write a book on this one after 28 years, but I will refrain to protect the innocent. Let’s just say coworkers and lots of laughs.”
Dills is the daughter of Hayesville graduates, Ed and Josie Jones. “I was an only child,” she said, adding, “My dad said I made up for five. After college I married Jackie Dills from Hiawassee, Ga., where we reside. I have a beautiful red Chow-Chow named Goliath, who is spoiled. If I’m not home then check the gym-home away from home.”
What does she hope students learn from her? “When they think back at who Coach Dills is, I hope they can say she was black or white-no gray area,” she said. “When it came to holding every student accountable, Coach Dills was tough but at same time she pushed because she loved and cared about our success and accomplishments.”
Dills concluded with, “I would like to thank all my HMS family for honoring me as their 2022-2023 Teacher of the Year. It was very humbling to have received this honor.”
Next week’s Clay County Progress will feature the other teachers honored by peers.