Central Middle School teacher is a semi-finalist for state’s top award

Staff Report
Lauren Schoeffler, fifth-grade math teacher at Central Middle School in Eunice, is one of 24 semi-finalist for middle school Louisiana Teacher of the Year.
The Louisiana Teacher of the Year is the highest honor the state can bestow upon a teacher. Each year, the Teacher of the Year Program recognizes and rewards an Elementary, Middle, and High School teacher who has demonstrated outstanding leadership and excellence in teaching.
Schoeffler was named St. Landry Parish Middle School Teacher of the Year.
The top middle school teacher will be named from nine finalists.
Schoeffler is a Eunice native and has been teaching for eight years. She is a 2005 graduate of Eunice High School and a 2011 graduate of UL Lafayette, which she attended through LSUE.
She will be honored at the 13th Annual Cecil J. Picard Educator Excellence Symposium and Celebration on July 19 at the Crown Plaza Executive Center in Baton Rouge.
The event is co-sponsored by Dream Teachers, a statewide nonprofit organization who works with business, industry, and organizations across Louisiana to advance the teaching profession.
Schoeffler was among 36 parish public school teachers honored at the Teacher of the Year banquet on Thursday.
Schoeffler said she set a goal for herself to be teacher of the year and that mirrors what she urges her students to do.
“I’m always telling my students to put forth their best effort,” she said before being honored at a School Board meeting Wednesday in Opelousas.
“I model hard work and effort,” she said.