The Heart of Center Award recognizes a staff member who goes above and beyond to make a positive difference for students, colleagues, families, and the community. The September 2026 Heart of Center recipient is Rachel Heard, Social Studies and American History Teacher and Coach at Center Middle School (CMS). Ms. Heard was nominated by Katrina Schlicht, English Language Arts Teacher at CMS.
Ms. Schlicht shared that Ms. Heard is an incredible educator. In addition to being a phenomenal teacher, she is also an assistant coach for soccer and basketball at CMS. This summer, she attended the AVID Summer Institute as one of the CMS delegates and returned with a wealth of knowledge that she is already putting into practice and sharing with colleagues.
Ms. Heard and Ms. Schlicht are co-teaching an elective class this semester, and Ms. Schlicht shared, “I am learning so much from her enthusiasm, her drive to improve rigor in our classroom, and her willingness to share ideas and collaborate to reach more students than we could just on our own. Her dedication to rigorous instructional practices encourages me to redouble my own efforts to develop rigorous, engaging lessons in all my classes. I can't wait to see how she continues to grow as a teacher, because she is one for history books!”
Colleagues describe Ms. Heard as an excellent teacher who holds students accountable while showing them how much she cares. She runs a rigorous, structured classroom and wants the best for every student. She is firm, but students know she is there to help them succeed.
When students talked about Ms. Heard, their faces lit up. They said, “She is the best! She keeps us on track and doesn’t give up on us. You can tell she cares about all of us, and we love coming to her class.” One student added, “She constantly keeps me on track, and that is definitely no easy task.”
Congratulations Ms. Heard! We are grateful for the dedication, care, and skill you bring to your students and colleagues and proud to have you as part of the Center School District team.
September Heart of Center Award Announced
September 30, 2026