It's a first for Little Wound Middle School and school officials couldn't be prouder.

Little Wound Middle School teacher Shannon Brady has been named South Dakota Mid-Level Educator of the Year.

"(This) is a great honor for our whole school, not just the middle school," said middle school principal Tom Raymond, adding that it's the first time for the middle school to win the award. "It's tremendous; it speaks well of that teacher and it speaks well of the school."

Brady, a language arts teacher at the school for the last two years, attended the South Dakota Mid-Level educator's conference last month where she was surprised with the award. She was nominated by Raymond, Little Wound curriculum director Cecelia Haas, school reform specialist Terry Albers and superintendent Linda Hunter.

"It is exciting," Brady said. "It was very much a surprise and very much an honor."

Haas said Little Wound schools have good teachers, but Brady rose to the top.

"I've been in education a little over 37 years and I have seen a passion in Shannon that I have not seen in a long time," she said. " … Students are committed to her to learn and you don't see that a lot."

Brady spent two days in Pierre for the conference and said one of the best aspects of the presentation was a plaque made by students in Pierre. She said students are the focal point of her philosophy.

"My philosophy is to bring my best every day for my students, meet them where they are and go as far as we can, together," she said.

Brady said she doesn't know exactly why she was the teacher nominated, but that she tries to go the extra mile for students and for the well being of the school. One example is that she makes a DVD lesson for her students to watch when she has to be absent for a day.

"They're full lessons," she said. "It's better for me because I know exactly what happened in my class and it's nice for substitutes and the kids. They have no gap in what it is that they're learning."

Haas said it's something she's never seen before and it's just one of the ways Brady puts extra effort into her job.

"She had (the DVD) timed down to the second of what was going to happen," Haas said. " … The substitute just had to supervise the kids because the kids knew exactly what they were going to do."

Brady said her game plan for the school year revolves around "consistently trying to better our school and students and thinking strategically to enhance heir learning and environment."

Raymond said Brady is a great example of why students succeed.

"We're on the right track when teachers are capable of this," he said. "I'm excited and pleased and very proud Shannon is teaching here and representing school in such a way to the state of South Dakota."

Contact Kayla Gahagan at 394-8410 or Kayla.gahagan@rapidcityjournal.com