A local teacher has a new title.

On March 30, Lexington County School District 1 named Lake Murray Elementary special education teacher Katherine Handell its Teacher of the Year for 2023.She will now go on to compete in next year’s state-level Teacher of the Year program.

According to a release, being a teacher has been a dream since childhood for Handell, who works to promote the inclusion of children with disabilities within her preschool class-room.

 “Katy Handell has a heart for education and the students she serves.” Lake Murray Elementary principal Jennifer Stanley is quoted in a release.

Handell has been an educator for 15 years, earning a bachelor’s degree in special education, early childhood education and elementary education from Erskine College. She received her masters of education in severe multiple disabilities from the University of South Carolina, and she is also a board-certified behavior analyst.

Handell was one of 31 school-level teachers to apply for the Teacher of the Year award.

According to the release, the district currently has 17 elementary schools, eight middle schools, five high schools, and one technology center. Based on this, there are three teams of elementary judges and one judging team each representing the middle and high school levels. All use an established rubric to score the applications.

Each team put forward their two highest-scoring applicants as finalists.

The other nine finalists for the award were Carolina Springs Elementary School gifted and talented teacher Tamela Jett, Gilbert Elementary School counselor Mackenzie Hall, Lexington Elementary School third grade teacher Erin McMillan, Lexington High School English teacher Megan Small, Meadow Glen Middle School English language arts teacher Trudie Montgomery, New Providence Elementary School STEAM teacher C. Andrew Brooks, Pleasant Hill Middle School Drama teacher Lori McKelvey, Saxe Gotha Elementary School special education teacher Kimberly Lewis and White Knoll High School chorus teacher Cheryl Felder.