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Elk Island Catholic Schools (EICS) have announced their nominees for the Edwin Parr Teacher Award, and one of them is a teacher from Fort Saskatchewan.
Rhianna Zazula was raised in Fort Saskatchewan, graduating from St. John Paul II, which was originally a high school before moving to St. Andre Bessette.
The award recognizes six first-year K-to-12 teachers across the province for their exemplary work.
After graduating, Zazula studied at Concordia University to one day become a teacher. Not long after getting her degree, she went back to St. Andre Bessette as a teacher.
"I now teach with a lot of the teachers that taught me in high school. It was all about the connections that I knew, and it ended up working out that I got a job here."
Zazula added that it's great to work with her fellow teachers.
"They're so supportive, and it's comforting because I know all of them."
This has been Zazula's first year teaching, which is what made her eligible for the Edwin Parr Teacher Award.
"It's been exhausting but really rewarding at the same time," said Zazula. "I teach all Grade 9's and 10's right now. Those are my grades."
Other nominees for the award are Rae-Lynn Billingsley from A.L. Horton Elementary and Brookylnn Mills at Archbishop Jordan Catholic High School.