Get On Board Teacher of the Year
2025 Teacher of the Year
First Push Syndicate is proud to have Matt Bristol, P.E. teacher at Essex Middle School in Essex Junction, Vermont as the Get On Board Teacher of the Year for 2025! Since Matt organized a training workshop for all twelve physical educators in his district, he has been a huge advocate for the program, and continues to lead the charge teaching skateboarding in physical education classes.
Matt is a SHAPE National Teacher of the Year, and is a leader not only in his school, but also in his district, state, and beyond. We’re stoked to have Matt as our Teacher of the Year for 2025, and can’t wait to see where he goes.
Teacher of the Year History
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Matt Bristol
2025 TEACHER OF THE YEAR
Matt is a P.E. teacher at Essex Middle School in Essex Junction, Vermont. Since adopting the program in the fall of 2024, Matt has gone above and beyond the expectations of Get On Board teachers, through the creation of new curriculum extensions + activities, to leading a district wide teacher workshop.
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Deb Thomas
2024 TEACHER OF THE YEAR
Deb Thomas is the P.E. teacher at Swasey Central School in Brentwood, New Hampshire, and has been teaching Get On Board classes since 2016. Through her continued dedication to the program both in and out of P.E. classes, Deb earned the Get On Board Teacher of the Year Award for 2024!
How do we find our Teacher of the Year?
Our network of Get On Board teachers continues to grow, and with that, we have met some amazing teachers. At the beginning of each year, we at First Push name our Get On Board Teacher of the Year, by following a simple, objective process that takes into account nearly twenty metrics, spanning from embracing project based learning, to creating new curriculum and lesson plans. Our Get On Board Teacher of the Year leads the charge for the coming year, and is an advocate for getting students from all over on board!
