Cynthia Welsh and Sharon Maze were honored as Cherokee County's teachers of the year at a recent ceremony at Centre First Baptist Church.

The event, held on a teacher in-service day, showcased the newly formed Cherokee County Show Choir, created from students from all Cherokee schools. The recipients of JSU Hall of Fame nominations were also announced. They were Marilyn Hudson and Cynthia Welsh.

Welsh and Maze will both move on to possibly become the Alabama Teacher of the Year. The purpose of the Alabama Teacher Program is to annually honor and recognize excellence in the teaching profession by identifying outstanding Alabama classroom teachers at the local, district and state levels. The winning teacher serves as an ambassador for the teaching profession and education in general; speaking to various groups to raise public awareness of educational achievements, issues and needs. He or she also serves as a resource for other teachers.

The Teacher of the Year is nominated by his or her peers. It begins on the school level with principals, parents, teachers, school representatives and counselors and librarians. The nominees then move to the school system level where they are whittled down to only two, one from elementary and one from secondary. The superintendent, a school board member, a parent organization representative and an elementary and secondary teacher make this decision.

The winners of the school system level become the county's teachers of the year and move to the state board of education and state levels. On the state level, all district winners can receive personalized note cards, ice cream for their schools, grants for classroom/instructional improvement, a $50 U. S. Savings Bond, a plaque and a personalized dictionary