The 2012 Middle School Physical Education Teacher of the Year for Illinois recently accepted an award honoring the Collinsville Middle School Physical Education Department as one of the finest in the State.
Audrey Hill (left) and Julie Semith with the banner acknowledging CMS as a Blue Ribbon Physical Education Award Winner / Photo courtesy of Audrey Hill
CMS Physical Education Department Chairperson Audrey Hill was honored with the 2012 Middle School Physical Education Teacher of the Year for Illinois by the Illinois Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, the same organization that recently honored her department with their Blue Ribbon Award.
The Blue Ribbon Award recognizes physical education programs that meet the IAHPERD standards for excellence in dozens of measurable objectives across five major categories: Curriculum; Instruction; Medical and Safety; Facilities, Equipment and Financing; Administration of Physical Education.
It is believed this is the first time Unit 10 has received the honor. The IAHPERD was founded in 1931 by a group of professionals dedicated to improving the effectiveness of health, physical education, recreation, dance and the promotion of human welfare, according to its website.
The award was a goal of the program at CMS to set it apart from others in the area, Hill said. It was also recognition of the importance of the CMS physical education teachers, she said.
“It’s a wonderful honor because some don’t understand the importance of physical education,” Hill said. “It’s nice to get recognized for the importance of what we stand for.”
Although Hill and CMS physical education faculty member Julie Semith accepted the award in November, the school was honored with the recognition in November 2012. The school will retain Blue Ribbon status until 2018, when it must reapply.
The vigorous application process included submitting a binder with 500-600 pages of supporting documentation, a full-day review at the school and interviews by members of IAHPERD with parents, School Board members, administration and students.
One area that Hill believes helped the department garner the award is their pride in making sure that the students are doing vigorous physical activity the entire time they are in class. The students are measured at the beginning and end of each school year in areas such as agility, cardiovascular, a one mile run, flexibility, speed and strength. Last year, the department saw a 90-95 percent improvement in the students from the beginning to the end of the academic year.
The 2012 CMS physical education department staff members that garnered the award are Hill, Semith, Doug Kirk, Chad Burgess, Tom King, Linda Kaspar and Curt Berger.
