A middle school Spanish teacher has been named the 19th Clark Faculty Chair at Sewickley Academy.
Jennifer Brown found out about the honor during the back-to-school assembly Sept. 2. Just like previous years, it was a surprise.
According to Brown, the Clark Faculty Chair Award is an annual award that was established in 2003 by Sewickley Academy’s board of trustees in honor of Ham Clark’s 15-year tenure as headmaster of Sewickley Academy and his wife, Ceci Clark’s many contributions to the life of the school.
Each year, the board of trustees accepts nominations from faculty, staff, students and parents for teachers who show mastery of subject matter, enthusiasm in the classroom, are respected by their colleagues, are fully engaged in the Academy and have a love for learning.
Interim head of school Ashley Birtwell said that Brown certainly fits the bill.
“Señora Brown has more than two decades of experience in the classroom and an academic background that has taken her to exceptional colleges and universities, both nationally and internationally,” Birtwell said. “Most notable is how Jennifer has touched the lives of so many students along the way, many of whom were compelled to nominate her last spring. She makes constant efforts to include and make each student feel special as well. Overall, she’s just the ideal teacher who cares about her subject and her students.”
Birtwell said that each Clark Faculty Chair awardee is honored with a custom Sewickley Academy chair with an engraved plaque, as well as a financial award.
“It is a tremendous honor within the Academy community,” she said.
A baccalaureate honors graduate from Boston College with a degree in Spanish, Brown also studied at the Universidad de Salamanca in Spain and the Universite de Laval in Canada. She has attended countless conferences, workshops and institutes on diversity, equity and inclusion, and teaching and curriculum design while at the Academy.
Brown has served the school in numerous positions and roles over the past 20 years, including the Faculty and Staff Diversity Committee and as a department chair, grade dean and sponsor of the Student Diversity Club. She currently serves on the newly established Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force.
“I am very honored and proud to be named the Clark Faculty Chair recipient for 2021-2022. Sewickley Academy has been an intricate part of my life for the last 22 years,” Brown said. “It has been a privilege to work with such amazing students and colleagues. Teaching languages has always been my passion and is still exciting after 32 years. I hope never to stop learning and growing as I continue to find new ways to take my students to the next level, striving to be the very best for my community and those that I serve.”
