Darrell Waltrip (center) congratulates winning Star Teachers Rodney Brinkley (at left, holding his baby Kaylyn), and Dianne Barrow (right). Seven Middle Tennessee teachers receiving Star Teacher awards this year from Darrell Waltrip Honda lined up with keys at the Franklin dealership Saturday morning, Dec. 10, for a try at a new Honda for one year. Brinkley, an auto mechanics teacher at Coffee County Central High School, had the key that started his new Honda, provided in a free one-year lease from Darrell Waltrip Honda. Dianne Barrow of Franklin’s Freedom Middle School found a feather duster in the glove box, so she wins free maid service for one year. All seven of the winners enjoyed lunch at the dealership Saturday as they competed for the two grand prizes. Brinkley was nominated for the award for working with his automotive repair class to restore a truck for a local soldier serving in Iraq. Barrow was nominated for her work as an Extended Alternative Classroom teacher at Freedom Middle School, where she works with students who have one last chance to remain in the traditional school setting.

Each month this year, one deserving teacher was selected by Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo management and honored on eight local radio stations, up to 200 times. Participating radio stations include 98 WSIX FM, 105.9 The Rock, 1510 WLAC Talk Radio; 95.5 The Wolf; 92Q; Star 97; Mix 92.9; Oldies 96.3; and 103.3 WKDF

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Granbery Elementary’s Vicky Long is September STAR Teacher of the Month

Granbery Elementary teacher Vicky Long says she is just one of many teachers who put in late hours planning activities for her second grade students. But her 34 years of dedication to her teaching career got the attention of Darrell Waltrip Honda, naming her Star Teacher of the month for September.

Nominated for the award by her daughter Lisa Long, Vicky Long says Granbery Elementary enjoyed a visit by racecar driver Waltrip, who came to school to announce the award, and will put the good use the $500 and load of prizes that comes with the honor she is happy to share with the school.

“People don’t realize how much time teaching takes,” Long says, explaining that she doesn’t think it is that unusual for a teacher to be working at school until 9 p.m. “A lot of teachers put in that kind of time to set up centers and plan for activities.”

Of her 34-year teaching career, Long has spent the past 15 years teaching second grade at South Nashville’s Granbery. She attended University of Memphis and has certification in special education, which she taught for several years, and a master’s degree in reading. One reason she enjoys teaching is that children “always surprise you” and the second grade is a good year because “they are old enough to do a lot of things but still sweet and helpful.”

Long is the eighth Middle Tennessee teacher to receive the Star Teacher Award, selected by Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo management and honored by recognizing the teacher by name and announcing the name of the person nominating them and their school’s name on eight local radio stations, up to 200 times. Participating radio stations include 98 WSIX FM, 105.9 The Rock, 1510 WLAC Talk Radio; 95.5 The Wolf; 92Q; Star 97; Mix 92.9; Oldies 96.3; and 103.3 WKDF. The Teacher of the Month also receives a limo ride and dinner for two at Sperry’s in Belle Meade and transportation from Signature Limousine; a night at the Grand Ole Opry for two with backstage access; day spa visit at LaBella Spa; $103 in school supplies from Staples; $50 in coupons for milk, juice and ice cream from Purity Dairy; tickets and passes to major concert events at Starwood Amphitheater, exciting exhibits at The Frist Center For Visual Arts, passes for Nashville Shores and Six Flags Over Georgia and Broadway shows at The Tennessee Performing Arts Center; $100 gift certificate at any CBL mall locations; and a $500 donation from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo to the teacher’s school.

After eight months of recognizing one special teacher each month, there will be a grand prize winner. In December, Darrell Waltrip will draw one name from each of the winning teachers from March to November and will award a grand prize that includes lease of a new Honda for two years and maid service for one year from Molly Maid house cleaning service.

Nominating your favorite teacher is easy. Simply provide the following information, or visit any of the Darrell Waltrip Honda, Volvo or Used Car dealerships. An entry kiosk is available at the dealerships.

Liberty Elementary’s Brenda Williams is August STAR Teacher of the Month

Friday morning assembly at Franklin’s Liberty Elementary School is always exciting as student accomplishments are announced and celebrated with whole school. Friday, Sept. 23, brought even more than the usual celebration with Darrell Waltrip announcing the second grade teacher Brenda Williams as Star Teacher of the Month for August.

“It was just wonderful and very exciting for me and the students,” Williams said.

Williams was nominated for the award by the parent of a fourth-grader whom she tutors in the mornings. Although second grade is her job and her passion, she devotes before- and after-school hours to tutoring several students in kindergarten through fourth grades.

“I do love second graders because they have reached an age where they are able to listen, follow through and stay with a task, but they still have love and respect for their teacher and their peers,” Williams said.

She credits a supportive principal, assistant principal and staff at Liberty Elementary School for making it such great environment for working and learning. Williams has been a public school teacher for 15 years and can’t imagine another career.

She was nominated for the award by Fatima Robertson, who credits Williams with the success her son has found at Liberty.

“Ms. Williams is GREAT and takes pride in her job,” Robertson said. “She is great to talk to and she gives honest feedback. Ms. Williams shows each child much love and attention but at the same time she keeps them in check when needed. I applaud everyone who works in our school systems because I am sure it is a hard job to be satisfying and pleasing to every parent and student but I give a hats off to Ms. Williams because she goes beyond that. I was able to contact her at anytime and she always listened to my concerns and helped me to find ways to better my child. Ms. Williams is an amazing teacher and I feel that she truly deserves to be acknowledged as a STAR TEACHER!”

Williams is the seventh Middle Tennessee teacher to receive the Star Teacher Award, selected by Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo management and honored by recognizing the teacher by name and announcing the name of the person nominating them and their school’s name on eight local radio stations, up to 200 times. Participating radio stations include 98 WSIX FM, 105.9 The Rock, 1510 WLAC Talk Radio; 95.5 The Wolf; 92Q; Star 97; Mix 92.9; Oldies 96.3; and 103.3 WKDF. The Teacher of the Month also receives a limo ride and dinner for two at Sperry’s in Belle Meade and transportation from Signature Limousine; a night at the Grand Ole Opry for two with backstage access; day spa visit at LaBella Spa; $103 in school supplies from Staples; $50 in coupons for milk, juice and ice cream from Purity Dairy; tickets and passes to major concert events at Starwood Amphitheater, exciting exhibits at The Frist Center For Visual Arts, passes for Nashville Shores and Six Flags Over Georgia and Broadway shows at The Tennessee Performing Arts Center; $100 gift certificate at any CBL mall locations; and a $500 donation from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo to the teacher’s school.

After eight months of recognizing one special teacher each month, there will be a grand prize winner. In December, Darrell Waltrip will draw one name from each of the winning teachers from March to November and will award a grand prize that includes lease of a new Honda for two years and maid service for one year from Molly Maid house cleaning service.

Nominating your favorite teacher is easy. Simply provide the following information, or visit any of the Darrell Waltrip Honda, Volvo or Used Car dealerships. An entry kiosk is available at the dealerships.

Mt. Juliet High School band director Tony Cox wins Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo Star Teacher Award

Mt. Juliet High School students are looking forward to a visit from Darrell Waltrip to recognize one of their favorite teachers, band director Tony Cox, with the Star Teacher Award for July.

Cox says he is receiving congratulations from students, former students and parents for the honor from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo of Franklin that has been announced on several Nashville radio stations. As the band director for 13 years at Mt. Juliet, Cox has had contact with lots of Mt. Juliet families who have supported him in his efforts to build an award-winning band.

“I am very fortunate to have a wonderful group of kids and parents, and the administration and school in general support the band program so much,” Cox said. The package of prizes included in the Star Teacher Award from the dealership includes $500 for the school, and Cox is thinking about a wide screen TV for the band room so the students can watch videotapes of their performances without having to crowd around a small screen.

The parent who nominated him, Martha Poston, says Cox is an exceptional teacher, leader and person.

“He spends countless hours after school, on weekends, and traveling with the band,” Poston says. “He receives no monetary compensation for all this extra time and effort. His wife goes with us on almost all the band trips so that she can be with him”

Cox was a high school band drummer who never thought of being a band director, but now can’t imagine doing anything else. The job does consume a lot of time, with long hot summer practices and a season that extends far beyond football and into winter guard and drum line, both of which are very “active and successful,” Cox says. They won a first place award statewide last year.

This is a very special year with 17 personable seniors and very active group of parents who work concessions at the Nashville Speedway, Starwood and Gaylord Entertainment Center to help pay for uniforms and trips last year to a World Championship competition in San Diego and other competitions in Indianapolis and Dayton, OH.

There are several NASCAR fans at Mt. Juliet High School looking forward to the visit from Waltrip and the school paper is planning an interview, so the whole process of winning the Star Teacher Award has been fun and exciting, Cox said.

Cox is the sixth Middle Tennessee teacher to receive the Star Teacher Award, selected by Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo management and honored by recognizing the teacher by name and announcing the name of the person nominating them and their school’s name on eight local radio stations, up to 200 times. Participating radio stations include 98 WSIX FM, 105.9 The Rock, 1510 WLAC Talk Radio; 95.5 The Wolf; 92Q; Star 97; Mix 92.9; Oldies 96.3; and 103.3 WKDF. The Teacher of the Month also receives a limo ride and dinner for two at Sperry’s in Belle Meade and transportation from Signature Limousine; a night at the Grand Ole Opry for two with backstage access; day spa visit at LaBella Spa; $103 in school supplies from Staples; $50 in coupons for milk, juice and ice cream from Purity Dairy; tickets and passes to major concert events at Starwood Amphitheater, exciting exhibits at The Frist Center For Visual Arts, passes for Nashville Shores and Six Flags Over Georgia and Broadway shows at The Tennessee Performing Arts Center; $100 gift certificate at any CBL mall locations; and a $500 donation from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo to the teacher’s school.

After eight months of recognizing one special teacher each month, there will be a grand prize winner. In December, Darrell Waltrip will draw one name from each of the winning teachers from March to November and will award a grand prize that includes lease of a new Honda for one years and maid service for one year from Molly Maid house cleaning service.

Nominating your favorite teacher is easy. Simply provide the following information, or visit any of the Darrell Waltrip Honda, Volvo or Used Car dealerships. An entry kiosk is available at the dealerships.

Suzy Willis of Murfreesboro’s Cason Lane Elementary named Star Teacher for June

Murfreesboro, Tenn . – Cason Lane Elementary School teacher Suzy Willis knows third grade is a big deal for her students. It is a year of multiplication tables and cursive handwriting--a year in which they are still young enough to be excited about school and learning, but taking on more challenging work.

After 23 years of teaching third graders, Willis is the Darrell Waltrip Star Teacher of the Month for July due to her extraordinary dedication to the classroom.

A parent, Shan Fite, who served as room mother in Willis’s classroom last year and had another child in her room the previous year, had this to say about Willis in her nomination for Star Teacher:

“It would take hours to write all that she does, but most importantly, she makes each and every child feel special,” Fite wrote. “She teaches not only the required educational subjects, but also, by example, she teaches respect for others, compassion and fairness. There are many good teachers, but Ms. Willis rises above the rest with her commitment to what she does both in the classroom and out.”

Willis says she was very surprised to learn from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo General Manager John Gallagher that she received the honor.

Since the award has been announced on the radio multiple times, she has enjoyed hearing from former students and parents offering their congratulations. She previously taught 11 years at Bellwood Elementary. She says the enthusiasm the children bring to the third grade keeps her motivated.

“I just love working with children this age,” she explains. “I like seeing the light bulb go off in their heads when they understand something. Also, they have so much personality and innocence at this age. It really keeps a person young. I just can’t imagine doing anything else.”
Fite says Willis honors two of her students' each grading period by taking them out to eat at a restaurant of their choice followed by a trip to a store to purchase a small reward of a toy or article of clothing.

“I can only imagine the joy and anticipation they feel when this night arrives,” Fite says. “She also remembers every child with a gift on his or her birthday, and she attends ball games and sporting events of her students when she can. I have no doubt that twenty years from now, you could ask any of her former students who their favorite teacher was, and her name will always be metioned.”

The Star Teacher Award is selected by Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo management and honored by recognizing the teacher by name and announcing the name of the person nominating them and their school’s name on eight local radio stations, up to 200 times. Participating radio stations include 98 WSIX FM, 105.9 The Rock, 1510 WLAC Talk Radio; 95.5 The Wolf; 92Q; Star 97; Mix 92.9; Oldies 96.3; and 103.3 WKDF. The Teacher of the Month also receives a limo ride and dinner for two at Sperry’s in Belle Meade and transportation from Signature Limousine; a night at the Grand Ole Opry for two with backstage access; day spa visit at LaBella Spa; $103 in school supplies from Staples; $50 coupons for milk, juice and ice cream from Purity Dairy; tickets and passes to major concert events at Starwood Amphitheater, exciting exhibits at The Frist Center For Visual Arts, passes for Family Fun at Nashville Shores and Six Flags Over Georgia, and Broadway shows at The Tennessee Performing Arts Center; $100 gift certificate at any CBL mall locations; and a $500 donation from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo to the teacher’s school.

Coffee County Central High School teacher wins May Star Teacher of the Month

Rodney Brinkley’s auto collision repair students at Coffee County Central High School know how heartwarming customer satisfaction can be after unveiling a fully restored truck for a very surprised local soldier on leave from Iraq.

For his efforts in teaching automotive repair, and his good deed for 2 nd Lt. Jason Tomberlin, Brinkley is the Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo Star Teacher of the Month for May. His wife, Nicole, submitted the nomination.

“On limited funds and labor supplied by Rodney and his students, the ’85 Toyota 4x4 was brought back to a showroom finish,” Nicole Brinkley said. “The look on the soldier’s face was more exciting to the students than the shiny truck gleaming in the sun.”

Rodney Brinkley says he is fulfilling a lifelong dream in his second year of teaching, and especially enjoyed the students’ excitement over restoring the soldier’s truck.

“He (Tomberlin) had no idea we were doing it, and the whole school was in on it,” Brinkley said. Fixing the soldier’s truck has helped get the students excited about automotive repair as a career, along with the auto restoration shows such as “My Ride” featured on MTV and other channels. The field of automotive repair continues to require more training as vehicles are increasingly sophisticated, and Brinkley stresses the importance of knowledge in the field.

“You know, English and math teachers can get a bachelor’s degree and their field doesn’t change much,” Brinkley says. “Automotive Service Certification requires you to be retrained and certified every five years. I’m now teaching students to work on the new hybrid cars.”

Brinkley plans to use the $500 donation from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo to purchase new tools for the automobile repair program. It is a challenge for the school’s program to keep up with the tools and equipment needed in the auto shop, he says.

Brinkley is the third teacher to receive the Star Teacher Award selected by Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo management and honored by recognizing the teacher by name and announcing the name of the person nominating them and their school’s name on eight local radio stations, up to 200 times. Participating radio stations include 98 WSIX FM, 105.9 The Rock, 1510 WLAC Talk Radio; 95.5 The Wolf; 92Q; Star 97; Mix 92.9; Oldies 96.3; and 103.3 WKDF. The Teacher of the Month also receives a limo ride and dinner for two at Sperry’s in Belle Meade and transportation from Signature Limousine; a night at the Grand Ole Opry for two with backstage access; day spa visit at LaBella Spa; $103 in school supplies from Staples; $50 coupons for milk, juice and ice cream from Purity Dairy; tickets and passes to major concert events at Starwood Amphitheater, exciting exhibits at The Frist Center For Visual Arts, passes for Family Fun at Nashville Shores and Six Flags Over Georgia, and Broadway shows at The Tennessee Performing Arts Center; $100 gift certificate at any CBL mall locations; and a $500 donation from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo to the teacher’s school.

After eight months of recognizing one special teacher each month, there will be a grand prize winner. In December, Darrell Waltrip will draw one name from each of the winning teachers from March to November and will award a grand prize that includes lease of a new Honda for two years and maid service for one year from a house cleaning service.

Nominating your favorite teacher is easy. Simply visit any of the Darrell Waltrip Honda, Volvo or Used Car dealerships. An entry kiosk is available at the dealerships, Or visit our web site at www.dwhondavolvo.com.

Left to Right - Sonia Vandriver (nominator) Darrell Waltrip, Aimee Schueth (Daughter of Sonia) Karen Bryant (Principal) Kirk Ponder (winner) John Gallagher (DW General Manager)

JFK Middle School band teacher Kirk Ponder receives

Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo Star Teacher of the Month Award

Kirk Ponder’s band students at Antioch’s JFK Middle School were learning to play Disney’s “You’ll Be In My Heart” when Darrell Waltrip arrived with the team announcing Ponder’s selection from hundreds of Middle Tennessee entries as Star Teacher of the Month.

The load of prizes that come with the honor is overwhelming, but it’s the letter from the parent of a student that Ponder admits got him choked up in front of his students. As a band teacher, Ponder gets to know the kids in a creative environment as they mature from ages 10 to 14 at JFK Middle School, and the challenges of adolescence absolutely do get in his heart.

“Because I’m a band teacher and they are here for four years, I am with them for a third of their lives,” Ponder explains. “And I’m not the class where they just tote a book around.”

But at the end of the day, he commutes an hour and a half back to Hickman County, where he’s a single dad to Clayton and Ethan, ages 8 and 4. He’s also in the National Guard Reserves and at times has to leave his responsibilities at home and at school to serve his country.

Sonia Vandiver of Antioch says Ponder makes a difference in the lives of all his students, including her daughter, Amy.

“He is a teacher that truly cares about his students,” Vandiver explains. “He takes time to mentor all of the kids that are in his classes whether it be a problem with school, at home, with a friend or a boy/girl friend. He finds time for his own children, to serve his country and to be a mentor, teacher and friend to every kid that his path crosses. He deserves something back for all of the good that he does and all the lives he enriches.”

Ponder is the second Middle Tennessee teacher to receive the Star Teacher Award, selected by Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo management and honored by recognizing the teacher by name and announcing the name of the person nominating them and their school’s name on eight local radio stations, up to 200 times. Participating radio stations include 98 WSIX FM, 105.9 The Rock, 1510 WLAC Talk Radio; 95.5 The Wolf; 92Q; Star 97; Mix 92.9; Oldies 96.3; and 103.3 WKDF. The Teacher of the Month also receives a limo ride and dinner for two at Sperry’s in Belle Meade and transportation from Signature Limousine; a night at the Grand Ole Opry for two with backstage access; day spa visit at LaBella Spa; $103 in school supplies from Staples; $50 in coupons for milk, juice and ice cream from Purity Dairy; tickets and passes to major concert events at Starwood Amphitheater, exciting exhibits at The Frist Center For Visual Arts, passes for Nashville Shores and Six Flags Over Georgia and Broadway shows at The Tennessee Performing Arts Center; $100 gift certificate at any CBL mall locations; and a $500 donation from Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo to the teacher’s school.

Ponder’s young boys have called dibs on the limo ride and dinner, but his principal, Karen Bryant, asked him how he wanted JFK Middle School to spend the $500.

“I said in the band department, of course,” he says. “Maybe for a computer software program that will allow them to do their music exams on the computer.”

After eight months of recognizing one special teacher each month, there will be a grand prize winner. In December, Darrell Waltrip will draw one name from each of the winning teachers from March to November and will award a grand prize that includes lease of a new Honda for two years and maid service for one year from Molly Maid house cleaning service.

Given that he is a finalist for a new car and maid service, the single dad with a very long commute can’t decide which would be better – the new Honda or the housecleaning for a year. He’s had an opportunity to teach at a school closer to his home on the Hickman/Williamson County border. “But in the end I just didn’t want to leave the program I had built here.”

He chooses to teach middle school because a high school band program would take too much time away from his children in the evenings and weekends, when his young boys are busy with sports and school activities. They are looking forward to enjoying the prizes with their dad, Ponder says.

Having Darrell Waltrip visit the school created some excitement, too. Ponder made sure a 12-year-old girl who races mini dragsters got a brief pass out of another class to meet the NASCAR champ.

“Here she was talking to Darrell Waltrip about race engines and carburetors,” Ponder says.

Not only did it make an impression on that girl, the entire Middle School and his own kids, Ponder is receiving congratulations of friends at church and the ballfields in his home community, since the award has been publicized on Nashville radio stations.

“Everywhere I go someone mentions to me they heard about it on the radio,” Ponder says.

Nominating your favorite teacher is easy. Simply provide the following information, or visit any of the Darrell Waltrip Honda, Volvo or Used Car dealerships. An entry kiosk is available at the dealerships.

Diane Barrow, the first winner of the Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo Star Teacher award, teaches at Freedom Middle School but not in the traditional classroom. Her days are filled with the challenge of turning around the students who have come to her “extended alternative classroom” as a last resort.

Despite the daily challenge, the sense of accomplishment keeps her motivated to work with some of the Franklin Special School Districts’ most at-risk students. It’s also gratifying, she says, to be nominated by her own daughter and recognized by the community with the Star Teacher Award, which brings a host of prizes that is completely overwhelming, she says.

“Darrell Waltrip’s people came to my door with a huge load of prizes,” Barrow says. “The main thing is they are giving the school $500, which is always just so needed.” She hopes to buy some very basic computer equipment--ink cartridges for a printer--with some of the money.

Each month this year, one deserving teacher is selected by Darrell Waltrip Honda Volvo management and honored on eight local radio stations, up to 200 times. Participating radio stations include 98 WSIX FM, 105.9 The Rock, 1510 WLAC Talk Radio; 95.5 The Wolf; 92Q; Star 97; Mix 92.9; Oldies 96.3; and 103.3 WKDF.

Ashley Barrow explains in the nomination that the Extended Alternative Classroom at Freedom Middle School is the last step for students at Freedom Middle and neighboring Poplar Grove School before they are send to the Alternative Learning Center that is housed in the Williamson County Jail and administered by the court system. Diane Barrow and others in the EAC program have turned many students around and helped them find success in the traditional school setting.

“The children that are in her room are given one last chance to straighten up before they get kicked out of school altogether,” Ashley Barrow wrote. Diane Barrow’s classroom is “a very structured environment where the children must learn to use manners, and respect for others. There have been several instances where Dianne Barrow has gotten the children to talk to her and eventually gotten to the root of the problem.”

Diane Barrow says her job is interesting because the wide variety of students who have trouble coping with middle school. Some are functioning at a very high level academically but have emotional or family needs; others are struggling with the academic workload. At any given time, there are about 10 students in her class, but springtime seems to bring more. Students spend a minimum of 10 days in her classroom but some take months.

“Each day is different and challenging, but I truly love my job.”

Diane Barrow is the first winner in an eight month program that will culminate with a grand prize winner. In December, Darrell Waltrip will draw one name from each of the winning teachers from March to November, and will award a grand prize that includes use of a 2005 Honda Accord EX or CR-V for one year and Ambiance Cleaning Service housekeeping services provided every month in 2006.

To nominate a deserving teacher like Diane Barrow, simply provide the information, at www.darrellwaltripstarteacher.com or visit any of the Darrell Waltrip Honda, Volvo or Used Car dealerships. An entry kiosk is available at the dealerships.