- Special Events
- Teacher of the Year
Lauren McKellar | Marilyn Brooks Secondary Excellence in Teaching
Renner Middle School | Band, Department Head
Teaching Philosophy
I wish I could say that my personal teaching philosophy was firmly rooted, easily articulated and has been clear to me since my first day in the classroom. The truth is that my understanding of what it means to be an effective teacher is every bit as intangible to me today as it was eighteen years ago. As I've worked to stay ahead of the ever-changing needs of my students and their families, I have implemented and abandoned countless strategies, sought advice from every direction, and have celebrated and grieved a steady pendulum of success and failure. I have grown in every way imaginable but can say with complete confidence that I still haven't reached my full potential as an educator. Through the constant haze of change surrounding my profession, what does remain clear to me year after year is that I absolutely love what I do, and that I will work tirelessly to be better at doing it.
While I have worn and shed more versions of myself than I can remember, there are certain truths that I hold at the core of who I am as an educator. I know that compassion and respect are essential, and in fact, that no true learning can happen in their absence. I believe that the passion a teacher brings to the classroom sparks a fire that can spread with abandon, lighting the way down whatever roads their students walk. Most importantly, I know that every child comes with a unique set of gifts and paucities which must be seen and understood by a teacher who is malleable enough to tend to each of their needs. These three tenets have changed me as a teacher and have turned my classroom into an inspiring place for shared learning and human connection.
As a young educator, I foolishly misinterpreted my strong classroom management as ‘good teaching.' It took me a little while to realize that mutual, unfeigned respect is a more powerful tool than discipline could ever be. When I started focusing less on consequences and more on connecting to my students and earning their trust, the entire atmosphere of my classroom changed for the better. As I began to share more about myself and my life, the more willing my students were to reveal themselves to me in return. Knowing each other better meant seeing each other in a different light and acknowledging the commonalities we share. My students no longer see me as just their teacher, they know me as someone's daughter, someone's wife, and someone's mother. They know I'm a great musician, but a horrible singer (which doesn't stop me, by the way). They know that my kids are smart alecs but that they are so sweet when they want to be. They know I like to laugh (a lot), and that I look ridiculous when I cry. They know that I have lived through so many of the same situations facing them in their own lives and have come through on the other side. They know that I want to know them, and that they matter. When respect is omnipresent in the classroom, the barriers fall, clearing the path for genuine learning to occur.
Though I stand firmly on the belief that teachers must be experts in their field to be effective, I also know that while knowledge can inform, only passion can inspire. Today's students have access to more information than they know what to do with, so if content mastery is all I bring to the table, I fear my job will be obsolete before long. What is not yet replaceable by any piece of technology, is my undeniable love for my craft and for the students I get to share it with.
Music has walked beside me through my highest and lowest moments, and it completely changed the trajectory of my life. I want my students to know WHY I chose music, what it's done for me, and all that it can do for them if they make a space for it. I teach music because it is one of the few great unifiers. It bridges culture gaps, language barriers, socioeconomic inequities, and every other sub-classifier I can think of. Few things bring me as much joy as watching children who would never normally interact in their outside lives, sit together, and collaborate to create something intensely beautiful. I cannot help but be moved when my students feel equally consumed by music's power. Every time a child asks if they can show me a song they've learned, sends me a link to a piece they want to share, shows up early to help a friend, or finds the courage to start writing melodies of their own, it just affirms that they too believe in the inherent specialness of what we do. I have seen the immense impact music has had on the lives of thousands of students that have come through my room and I can't imagine spending my days doing anything else.
If my love of music is at the core of why I teach, persistent flexibility is at the center of how I do it. Being an effective educator today isn't about being any one thing, it's about being everything. Children must be whole before they can learn, so an impactful teacher must be a shapeshifter, able to bend and expand to fill in the gaps in their students' lives. Some children come in needing structure and accountability to be successful, some need laughter and lightness. Some have never been expected to do anything but the minimum and need a nudge to accomplish more than they have before; others have so much push in their lives already that they are just looking for a space to breathe. My single most important job as a teacher is to know my students deeply enough to see exactly which pieces of the puzzle they are missing, and my success as an educator is fully dependent on my ability to be all of those things, for all of those kids, every single day.
As education moves forward, no one can predict how the face of the classroom, or the roles of our teachers, will evolve. That state of uncertainty can be hard to endure, and the importance of our task weighs heavily on my heart. What I do know without question is that there will be a steady flow of new obstacles facing students and educators every year. Through these inevitable challenges, I will fight to hold onto my passion for the art that summoned me to teaching and to share that joy freely. I will keep pushing myself to connect with my students through an authentic appreciation for who they are and who they are trying to become. Lastly, I will continue to reshape myself time and time again to best meet the needs of every child who walks through my door. With these strongholds in place, I look forward to many more years of seeing students come together, exceed expectations, and become impassioned owners of their life-long education.
Dear Teacher of the Year Selection Committee:
Commonly, writing a recommendation letter is an obligation that we administrators incur by virtue of our leadership position. We find ourselves reusing the same phrases to describe the competency of staff members we may not know very well. Less commonly, however, recommending an employee is a real pleasure, because we do not absolutely know the educator is deserving of the highest possible recommendation.
Writing for Lauren McKellar is that rarest of the combination: a pleasure and an obligation. It is a pleasure because I have known and worked with Mrs. McKellar over the last two years and have come to know that her instructional leadership and commitment to students is extraordinary. Mrs. McKellar is the band director and one of six performing arts teachers at Renner Middle School, and I find her to be an incredibly effective teacher and role model for her colleagues and students on campus. Mrs. McKellar is also the Electives Department Chair, where she is responsible for facilitating the growth and development of all electives programs, maintaining the recruitment and retention of students in the performing arts, and mentoring and supporting new teachers. As a result, the performing arts program, specifically the band program, that Mrs. McKellar has developed at Renner Middle School over the last 17 years is nothing short of incredible. This year, there are nearly 300 students enrolled in our campus' band program, and I have no doubt that it is because of the relationships she has developed with students and the love for music that Mrs. McKellar inspires within them. Lauren McKellar is inspirational, motivated, knowledgeable, highly passionate, dedicated to her job, and is an enormous asset to Renner Middle School.
This letter is also an obligation because I feel compelled to convince the selection committee that Mrs. McKellar is deserving of every consideration to be recognized as Plano ISD's Teacher of the Year. She is precisely the type of educator and leader that any campus would benefit from having. When I began as principal at Renner MS last school year, she was one of the first staff members to introduce herself and welcome me onboard. She was on campus because she was preparing for the school year and facilitating rehearsal space for the Plano West band - during her summer vacation! I quickly came to know Mrs. McKellar as a highly valuable member of the Renner staff, and I made certain she was a member of the leadership team. As a returning member of this team, she helps assist with decisions related to student and staff culture, student support and progress monitoring systems, program recruitment development, and instructional calendaring and scheduling.
Additionally, Mrs. McKellar demonstrates her innate ability to successfully teach students from various demographics and academic levels on a daily basis. As a campus with 340 Emergent Bilingual students, she does not let language barriers get in her way. She works with every single student to meet them where they are and help them get to where they need to be. The band hall can be seen full of students early in the morning before school starts and well after the dismissal bell has rung. One of my favorite things to do from an administrative duty perspective is to attend band concerts. There you will see students who struggle academically or behaviorally in other classes soaring and excelling as they play their instruments. The looks on students' faces because they are feeling success and accomplishment is what all educators strive for, and that is all I see when I see Mrs. McKellar's students perform because of the effort she puts into them. Teaching is a craft, and Mrs. McKellar has perfected it, evidenced by her strong program retention and as a recipient of exclusively Sweepstakes Awards at UIL Concert and Sight Reading contests since 2007.
Further, it is my duty as a principal to recommend with the greatest enthusiasm only those most deserving of the district's Teacher of the Year recognition. I am thoroughly convinced that Mrs. McKellar is such an educator. At Renner Middle School, our staff has three core values: student-centered decision-making, commitment to excellence, and accountability for everyone. I feel assured in saying that Mrs.McKellar puts students at the heart of every decision she makes, is in the relentless pursuit of excellence, and holds herself accountable to her students, her colleagues, the campus, and the Renner community. Mrs. McKellar is by far one of the most assiduous and dynamic teachers I have come across during all my years in education. She has proven herself to be an accomplished teacher and leader, and I have no doubt that she will continue to serve as a role model and mentor in the years to come. I am confident in recommending Mrs. McKellar because although there are numerous extraordinary attributes that she possesses, the most important characteristic I believe anyone should know about is her unparalleled dedication to students. She consistently goes beyond what is asked of any educator in her efforts and ability to guide and develop her students.
Despite her many strengths, she is humble, self-effacing, and diligent. I cannot recommend Mrs. McKellar highly enough for the Plano ISD Teacher of the Year recognition. When I think about Renner's pursuit to be an exemplary campus for teaching and learning, I think about Lauren McKellar. She is an exceptional teacher and individual who, in my opinion, deserves your most serious consideration.
Sincerely,
Nemisha Bhakta, Principal
Renner Middle School