In 2023, our Geoffrey J. Comber Touchstones Teachers of the year are two professors who actively engage both new educators and students in the Touchstones programs. Dr. Chelsie Hawkinson and Dr. Nathan Slife are Associate Professors at the University of Nevada – Las Vegas (UNLV), Chelsie and Nathan have introduced Touchstones to dozens of colleagues and more than a thousand students over the course of the past year. We are thrilled they are so passionate about sharing their knowledge and engaging others in this important work.

UNLV offers seven undergraduate courses in the College of Education, which will include Touchstones programs. In addition, a groundbreaking course involving Touchstones designed to help veterans transition back into everyday life including returning to college will return this year. Along with the veterans program, other new courses using Touchstones will include a course for math anxiety and phobia, an education psychology course, and a transition program for transfer students in their first or second years of college.

Nathan said about receiving this honor, “Thank you so much. I’m so honored to have been selected as a co-recipient with Chelsie for this award. Using Touchstones in our classes has been absolutely amazing, and I so appreciate everyone’s support at Touchstones for all that we are doing.”

In addition to his Touchstones work at UNLV, Nathan also ran five summertime Touchpebbles classes three days a week for three weeks with 4th, 5th, and 6th graders at Kesterson Elementary School. There is a wonderful blog post by Nathan on our website about his experiences over the summer running these programs and the effect Touchstones programs made on these young minds.

Chelsie shared, “Thank you so much for this honor. It feels like I should be handing out the award to your team. It’s been invigorating to work on a project like this, and I expect it to only get better and better.”

Thank you Chelsie and Nathan for being exemplary role models of Touchstones!

Keith Eaton teaches 9th grade Modern History and several elective courses at Mount Desert Island High School, and was nominated by his former supervisor, Julie Keblinsky, Director of Teaching and Learning for 7th – 12th grades. Four years ago, Mount Desert Island Regional Schools (MDIRSS) identified Touchstones to support the district’s goals of building students’ civil discourse skills. Julie shared that Keith has championed the program because its tenets “are at the core of his own identity as a teacher and the values he aims to live every day.” Since starting with Touchstones Volume A three years ago, he has served as a model for including all students’ voices and digging deeper into the ideas and themes presented in the texts. “His success is best exemplified when you hear his students take a situation and suggest, ‘Let’s approach this like a Touchstones discussion!’ Julie shares.

Keith has also begun leading Touchstones discussions with administrators and colleagues and was a 2021 Touchstones Fellow.

Colin Hogan serves as Head of School at Learning Community Charter School (LCCS) in Jersey City, NJ, and was nominated by Assistant Head of School, Maureen Rexer, who describes him as “a living embodiment of the values of Touchstones.” Colin discovered Touchstones in 2014 and has implemented it throughout LCCS ever since. In addition to his considerable responsibilities as Head of School, Colin is so passionate about the positive impact the program has on students that he leads model Touchstones sessions for teachers and regularly observes their Touchstones lessons to help deepen their skills as discussion leaders. Colin calls Touchstones the missing piece in the educational experience LCCS sought to provide for students. “Every week our students have the opportunity to engage in rich conversations about ideas and their own experiences, and they attempt to understand text and each other. I simply can’t think of anything better.”

In light of the overwhelming and unanticipated changes in education in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Board of Directors and staff found it only fitting to recognize all Touchstones teachers as exemplars of Geoff Comber’s indomitable spirit and faith in education. We saw many teachers courageously rise to the challenge of ensuring their students’ voices are cultivated, heard, and valued by going above and beyond to meet their academic and social-emotional needs. And we were heartened to hear how Touchpebbles and Touchstones discussions were invaluable tools for maintaining and rebuilding community at a time when our nation is increasingly separated—ideologically and physically.

Earning the award in 2019, Suzan Powell has actively supported Touchstones since 2016. A teacher at the Maryland Correctional Institution for women (MCI-W), Suzan is an exemplary teacher in the prison school. Each week, Suzan helps students in her Employment Readiness Workshop strengthen their work and life skills through a variety of educational activities and exercises. Touchstones is a central part of those efforts. As a speaker at our 2019 Summer Bash, Suzan emphasized the important role Touchstones plays in building a stronger community- not only for women in prison, but for people everywhere.

Rick Vanosdall earned the award in 2018. Both he and his wife, Kim, have long supported and dedicated time to bring Touchstones to educators and classrooms throughout Tennessee and the entire country. Rick brought Touchstones to Middle Tennessee State University and has used it with teachers, university leadership, and students in his own classes. When told of the award, Rick said “I feel honored and humbled to be recognized by you and the Board with the award for Touchstones Teachers of the Year 2018. [Touchstones] has brought peace and understanding to so many. I count myself lucky to have been able to connect with you and the work of bringing peace and light into this world.”

J.J. Cromer (now at the The White Mountain School, Bethlehem, NH), and Antxon Iturbe (St. Anne’s-Belfield School, Charlottesville, VA) won the 2017 award. The two were co-teachers in an ELL Humanities course for international 9th and 10th graders. Cromer also taught 9th grade English and Iturbe taught Spanish 4, 5 & 5 Honors to 11th and 12th graders. They started implementing Touchstones in 2013 with Readings from Social Studies and Touchstones Volume 1. Additionally, Iturbe used the Spanish translation of Touchstones Volume 1 with his Spanish 5 Honors class. Both continue their work with Touchstones today.

The 2016  award winner was Larry Harris, a teacher at Elkton High School. He teaches 10th and 11th grade English, English Honors, English as a Second Language and Arts of Expression. Harris started his relationship in 2013 when he participated in a weeklong intensive Touchstones training initiative at Cecil County Public Schools. Since then, Harris has trained dozens of CCPS middle school teachers in Touchstones.

The 2015 award was presented to Shanelle Muse, a 5th grade teacher at Learning Community Charter School in Jersey City. She has taught over 100 students using Touchpebbles as an integral part of her English class. Even in her acceptance speech, Shanelle demonstrated her heart as a true educator and role model by sharing her student Emily’s perspective: “[Touchpebbles] made me think more about the world in different perspectives. It also gets me ready for the real world… it will also help everyone stand up for what they believe. After we finish you feel empowered and feel strong, like a gust of wind.”

At Touchstones’ special 30th Year Gala event in December of 2014, Myke Healy, Director of Teaching & Learning at Trinity College School in Port Hope, Ontario, was recognized as the 2014 recipient.

The 2013 award was presented to Steven Davidson, a high school teacher in the North East San Antonio School District (NEISD).

The 2012 winner was Garreth Heidt, a Humanities teacher from Perkiomen Valley Middle School East in Collegeville, PA.