Flagler Schools' Teacher and Employee of the Year named

Flagler Schools announced Donelle Evensen as the district's Teacher of the Year and Eugenia Moore as the district's Support Employee of the Year during an evening celebration Thursday, Jan. 17, according to a press release.

The two winners will now represent Flagler County Schools in statewide competitions in the coming months.

Teacher of the Year Donelle Evensen is currently a literacy coach at Rymfire Elementary School. Evensen is a graduate of Flagler Palm Coast High School. Upon graduation, she attended the University of Central Florida, majoring in exceptional student education. She returned to Flagler Schools following her graduation from UCF in 2006 and began teaching at Rymfire Elementary that fall.

“It makes me feel like I may have accomplished what I’ve set out to do and that’s increase student achievement and increase support for our teachers and make them feel like they’re valued and are appreciated for what they do every day,” Evensen said in the release.

She obtained her master's degree in elementary reading and literacy from Walden University in 2008. In 2017, she earned a master's certification in educational leadership from Stetson University. She has been married for 16 years, and has four children.

Support Employee of the Year Eugenia Moore, the guidance clerk at Matanzas High School, also serves as a testing and ESE secretary. She has worked with Flagler Schools since 2004.

“Both my children are products of Flagler Schools,” Moore said in the release. “They’ve both been told they can do whatever they want and they have always had the support of their teachers. I am so proud of Matanzas and to be a part of the Flagler Schools family.”

Moore attended Mitchell College and St. Johns University before moving to Flagler County in 2002. In addition to working at Matanzas, Moore has two children. Jadakiss, her son, graduated from MHS last year and is a student at Daytona State College. Her daughter, Janay, is a sophomore at MHS. On top of that, Moore has been a Girl Scout Troop leader for the past eight years.

“Both Donell and Eugenia are shining examples of what it means to be a significant adult,” Superintendent James Tager said in the release. “They came to Flagler Schools in different ways, but after getting to know the two of them, it is easy to see why they were named our Teacher and Support Employee of the Year. They will represent Flagler Schools well this upcoming year.”