From left: Julie Kenny, MACTE president; Dwight Littlefield, state of Maine CTE director; Jean Palmer, Region 10 Teacher of the Year; Pender Makin, state of Maine commissioner of Education; and David Keaton, executive director of MACTE. Photo contributed by Region 10 Technical High School

During its statewide conference at Lewiston Regional Technical Center last week, Maine Administrators of Career and Technical Education recognized Region 10 Technical High School’s Jean Palmer as 2022’s Career and Technical Education Teacher of the Year.

Palmer, who has taught creative digital media at Region 10 in Brunswick for the past four-and-a-half years, was congratulated for her extraordinary accomplishments at the MACTE conference on Oct. 7 by Maine’s Commissioner of Education Pender Makin and Julie Kenny, president of MACTE and director of Bath Regional Career and Technical Center.

In her introductory remarks, Kenny quoted Palmer’s nomination by Paul Perzanoski, Region 10’s former superintendent/director, who said, “Having observed Jean’s teaching first hand on many occasions and having seen the impact she’s had on both her program and our school community as a whole, it is without exaggeration that I say that she is among the most talented, dedicated and extraordinary educators I’ve ever experienced in my many decades as an educator.”

Kenny lauded Palmer’s unyielding efforts at Region 10.

“Since coming to Region 10, Palmer turned a half-time program struggling to attract students into Region 10’s most sought-after and highly enrolled program,” Kenny said. “She has made significant contributions to her students’ technical and cultural education, to Region 10’s web presence and functionality, and to all the school’s marketing, outreach and recruiting efforts. Like so many of you here today, Jean is a tireless and unyielding advocate for her program and her students who will spend every last moment, penny and resource to improve the lot of her students and her program.”