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Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools has named its Teacher of the Year, Principal of the Year, Classified Employee of the Year and Assistant Principal of the Year. The winners were announced at a banquet Thursday night.

Called the “Core Awards,” the annual event highlights and celebrates employees that are exceptional educators and live the district’s core values. The core values include equity, student-centered, accountability, integrity, high expectations and collaboration. There were more than 150 nominees in all. Twelve finalists, three in each category, were showcased at the banquet.

Teacher of the Year: Abi Woodson, fourth-grade teacher at Speas Elementary is the new Teacher of the Year. Woodson has been teaching for 15 years and has been at Speas since 2012. Carrie French of Moore Elementary and Nicole Wooten of Caleb’s Creek Elementary were also finalists.

Classified Employee of the Year: Sandra Shropshire, financial/lead secretary at East Forsyth High School, was awarded Classified Employee of the Year. Shropshire has been at East Forsyth for 15 years. The other finalists were Margo Cochran of Northwest Middle and Angie Grace of Jefferson Elementary.

Assistant Principal of the Year: Samantha Fitzgerald of Lewisville Elementary is the new Assistant Principal of the Year. Fitzgerald has been at Lewisville since 2016. She joined Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools in 2013 as a teacher. Tamatha Fullerwinder of Moore Elementary and Kendra Scott of Ashley Academy were also finalists.

Principal of the Year: Debra Gladstone was named Principal of the Year. Debra is principal at Mineral Springs Elementary and Middle schools. She has been with Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools since 2000. Angie Choplin of Lewisville Elementary and Donald Wyatt of Sedge Garden Elementary were the other two finalists.