Sheryl Melton, Beaver High School
2008 Oklahoma Medal of Excellence in Secondary Teaching
Sheryl Melton, winner of the Medal for Excellence in Secondary Teaching, teaches 11th- and 12th-grade English and Advanced Placement English at Beaver High School. A 37-year teaching veteran, Melton has been consistently named “favorite teacher” by Beaver students and is a five-time winner of Beaver School Teacher of the Year.
What sets Melton apart, says colleague Kerry Hamilton, is her positive attitude and willingness to step into uncharted territory to advance her students’ potential.
In 1988, Melton was one of the nation’s first Interactive television teacher, broadcasting her innovative teaching techniques to rural Beaver County schools. Whether she is teaching the sonnets of Shakespeare to a single classroom or presenting multimedia vocabulary lessons to hundreds of teens, Melton seeks to make a personal connection with each student.
“Only when a student feels a connection, a bridge, a relevance to his life, does a lesson have value to that student,” she said.
A nationally certified educator and Master Teacher, Melton also serves as Beaver’s yearbook adviser, Student Council adviser and Academic Team coach. She has launched several initiatives to support academic achievement in her district, including the After School Attention Program (ASAP) to help students improve skills and the Beaver Education Support Team (BEST), an organization that honors academic success.
Former student Stefani Overton said she hopes to follow in Mrs. Melton’s footsteps and become a teacher. “She always has a bubbling personality and makes her students feel important and comfortable in her classroom” Overton said.