Holly Frye – Clinton Elementary

Ms. Frye made a huge impact on my daughter in her class last year. My daughter has a very active and sometimes misunderstood personality. Ms. Frye recognized the potential my daughter had for good immediately. She harnessed the energy and the love for people that my daughter has and used it to benefit the whole class.

Ms. Frye worked hard to teach the kids about being citizens in the world. Their classroom worked on things like seeing things from other people’s perspective, taking other people into consideration when making choices, looking for the good in others, and treating their classmates with respect so that everyone could prosper in their class.

She celebrated the fact that my daughter could love even the students who had been pegged by others as unlovable. She pointed out to her that this was a special talent that she had, and made her feel so good about herself as a person. All of the kids in that class learned what it means to be part of a whole and were included in the amazing culture she created in that classroom.

Ms. Frye said something to my daughter and me once in a Parent Teacher Conference: “It’s wonderful to be smart, but it’s even better to be kind.” She taught them the things they needed to know for their curriculum, but she taught them life skills that will benefit them even more than the traditional ABCs and 123s. This kind of teaching is not something you can learn in college, it comes from her desire to make the lives of these children better even after they leave her classroom. I’m so grateful that my daughter had a chance to be in her class.

–Camille Albrecht