Contact: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Kellie Little, a second-grade teacher at Athens-Chilesburg Elementary; and Rachel Losch, visual arts specialist at Dixie Magnet Elementary are among 24 outstanding educators to receive the 2012 Ashland Inc. Teacher Achievement Awards. They will compete for the Kentucky Teacher of the Year Award, which will be announced next month.

All 24 honorees will be congratulated Oct. 18 at the Capitol in Frankfort, with cash awards and certificates from the Kentucky Department of Education, the Governor’s Office and Ashland Inc.

The state’s Elementary, Middle and High School Teachers of the Year will also be recognized, and the Kentucky Teacher of the Year will be named from those three finalists.

The Kentucky Teacher Awards program combines the best elements of the Ashland Inc. Teacher Achievement Awards and the Kentucky Teacher of the Year programs. This marks the 11^th year that KDE and Ashland have partnered to honor the state’s top educators.

Applications include information on the nominees’ teaching philosophies, teaching experiences and involvement in their communities, as well as letters of recommendation from peers, students, parents, administrators and others.