At the bottom of the 2017 Juneau-Douglas High School softball print-out schedule are four words: loyalty, trust, attitude, effort.<\/p>\n
They are the guiding principles of the team, but could just as accurately characterize its new head coach\u2019s teaching philosophy.<\/p>\n
Lexie Razor, 1994 JDHS graduate now in her 16th year teaching high school math, was awarded BP\u2019s Teacher of Excellence last month. Out of the 29 public and private educators from Alaska given the distinction, only three represented Southeast: Razor, Craig\u2019s Deanna Ferguson Claus and Mt. Edgecumbe\u2019s Sara Jacoby.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was exciting,\u201d Razor said of receiving the honor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just know kids and I work with teenagers a lot and I\u2019ve learned a lot about how to have different approaches for what they need and just have patience with them and respect them,\u201d Razor said, whose taught in three states besides Alaska.<\/p>\n
JDHS principal Paula Casperson said Razor is the first BP nod from JDHS in her four years at the post.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is exactly the sort of recognition that we think is appropriate,\u201d Casperson said. \u201cShe is high-energy and she\u2019s innovative and she\u2019s doing good things for kids across the board.<\/p>\n
Only 3 percent of the total nominations made the cut: 13 from Anchorage and Mat-Su, five from the Kenai Peninsula, six from Fairbanks and five from \u201coutlying districts,\u201d which includes Southeast.<\/p>\n
Each teacher awarded received a $500 gift card and $500 matching grant to their school. Razor\u2019s accomplishment will be celebrated by faculty and students during a May 11 ice cream social at the school.<\/p>\n
Faculty peer Michaela Moore nominated Razor for the award because, in her words, \u201cLexi is my hero.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLexi loves teaching and she loves teenagers,\u201d Moore wrote in her December nomination of Razor. \u201cShe understands teenagers. She finds the heart and soul in teenagers. And she see\u2019s the humor in teenagers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Senior softball utility player Ally Ireland-Haight, who also has been a regular in Razor\u2019s math classes over the years, says it\u2019s no small feat to become the head coach of the program.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s honestly impressive,\u201d Ireland-Haight said. \u201cI\u2019ll be in her classroom before school a lot of the time and she\u2019s just working on softball stuff. She puts in so much time and it\u2019s incredible how much work it actually is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Razor says her coaching drive comes from the same place as her teaching one.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, it\u2019s the girls that come first,\u201d Razor said. \u201cThat they\u2019re having fun and that they\u2019re learning and it\u2019s not just about softball, it\u2019s about life and learning how to manage school and practice and just everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
She helps her students manage school through YouTube tutorials, in-class games and even mobile apps such as \u201cQuizizz\u201d and \u201cKahoot.\u201d She keeps all the links to her tutorials through her own webpage: msrazormath.com, where students can also find the class calendar, notes and syllabus.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe really has a sense for what individual students need and how to help them learn,\u201d Casperson said.<\/p>\n