Alyce Dalzell, a sixth grade math and science teacher at Meridian Ranch Elementary School, was named “Teacher of the Year” in Wal-Mart’s 10th national “Teacher of the Year” program.Dalzell won based on an essay written and submitted by one of her students, Logan Balaich. When she heard Rob Cowgur, store manager of the Wal-Mart store on Woodmen Road, read Balaich’s essay in front of the school’s principal and teaching staff at a surprise staff meeting at Meridian Ranch Elementary, she was touched. Balaich’s essay included some of the same adjectives attributed by other students in describing their favorite teacher: nice, kind, helpful and fun.Balaich’s essay detailed what he finds special about his teacher: She’s very giving.He described Dalzell as someone who will do just about anything for her students, even to the extent of using her personal money to buy supplies for various school projects. Dalzell’s recently bought 12 Scrabble board games, which she uses as a tool for her students to learn their math vocabulary words.”I’m great at going to flea markets … book sales and begging and borrowing from parents,” Dalzell said. She is quite proud of some of her unique finds, such as a complete skeleton of a mouse and one of a beaver. “When you walk into my classroom, it just looks like it is flowing over,” she laughed.Dalzell explained that because the school is so new, there aren’t enough funds to buy all the resources necessary for projects that her students are interested in doing. “Once a school has been open for several years, they build up a repertoire of test tubes, and beakers (glass containers for chemistry experiments) and manipulatives (hands on tools for teachers like a puzzle), but we’ve just opened and we don’t have that,” said. “But yet they are at that age where everything is so exciting and I just want to capture them now.”Going the extra mile is easy for Dalzell when she sees the excitement in her students as they learn more about math and explore the world of science. “When I see the excitement in the kids, it’s contagious,” she said. “I’m just opening up doors for them, and we’re going down the road together.”Dalzell, who has been a teacher for more than 27 years, said she never gets tired of teaching. “I don’t want this to sound hokey to you, but truly, there has never been a day in 27 years that I’ve ever gotten up and said, “Oh, I don’t want to go to work today,” she said. “I’m so excited.” Dalzell said when that day comes she knows it will be time to retire.Associates from the Wal-Mart Super center on East Woodmen Road presented Dalzell with a $1,000 educational grant to Meridian Ranch Elementary School, a $50 gift card to buy supplies for her classroom and an honorary Wal-Mart greeter’s vest.Wal-Mart has currently donated $28,000 to local schools, $70,000 in the state of Colorado and $4.2 million nationwide.
