Each year, the Archdiocese of Detroit Department of Catholic Schools recognizes teachers with the Excellence in Teaching Award. Congratulations to Mrs. Theresa Radich and Mr. Nghiem Nguyen on their recognition. This year’s recognitions could not be given at the annual banquet hosted by to recognize scholar-athletes, retirees, and teachers. Everest’s principals present this year’s award recipients.
“Theresa Radich is an integral part of Everest’s faith formation program. For 24 years she has taught the academy students about their faith with such joy and energy that the children often bring home what they learn from her. Many parents have shared that their family’s faith grew due to the influence Mrs. Radich had on their children. Theresa never slows down in looking for more ways to share God’s goodness with her students. This past summer she was an integral part in the creation of our Catechesis of the Good Shepherd atrium. Theresa always goes the extra mile or ten to bring Christ to others. During the recent distance learning, Theresa has recorded herself reading books on saints, singing the songs the children love so well, and creating fun, religious projects for the family to do together. She never slows down and often comments that she does not plan on retiring, ever! She loves what she does just too much! Students over two decades have learned from Mrs. Radich and her witness has opened these hearts to Christ.”
“Nghiem Nguyen has been a major contributor to Everest Collegiate’s program for a number of years as he now completes his ninth year at Everest. Nghiem teaches both math and technology, and he is always looking for meaningful ways to improve the education and the formation that we provide our students. At least yearly, he brings a well-crafted, thoughtful proposal to school leadership asking to start a new program or project that will support student learning and formation. This year, Nghiem was invaluable in helping to lead the entire faculty and staff through the process of understanding technology implementation during our shift to distance learning during the Covid-19 crisis. Nghiem is also the originator of our senior capstone project, instituted this school year, through which every senior has the opportunity to focus on an area of personal academic interest under the personal guidance of one of our teachers. This supports the development of our students as life-long learners while also providing them opportunity to create a final paper or presentation that will be presented to the entire student body. Nghiem has also spent many hours this year managing his fledgling robotics program and supporting the students who are learning important 21st century skills under his direction. While all of this has been under his care and direction throughout the 2019-2020 school year, Nghiem has also continued to manage and improve the school’s 1:1 technology program that he spearheaded a handful of years ago, and he is also helping to prepare the lower school for implementation of 1:1 technology in the 2020-2021 school year. Nghiem is a highly capable, faith-centered educator who daily goes well beyond the call, using his talents to serve his students and his fellow teachers.”
2020 Archdiocese of Detroit Teacher of the Year from Catholic High School League on Vimeo.
