Northside teacher Meredith Jierski named Clinton Public School District’s 2021-2022 Teacher of the Year
January 5, 2022
Clinton Public School District’s Teacher of the Year Meredith Jierski has made it a mission to install a love of learning into her students.
“My goal is for my students to love learning and to never stop learning,” Jierski said. “I don’t want school to be a daunting burden for them. I want them to be excited to come to school each and every day.”
For the past decade, the second-grade teacher has incorporated unique methods into her pedagogy, mixing her energy with scientific research and strong mentorship.
“I learned early on that we teach the same things every year,” Jierski said, “and students are going to struggle with the same concepts.”
She said students have the tendency to forget what they learn in class but show a propensity to remember every word to popular music.
So, she dove into some neuroscience research and discovered that the more stimulated a child’s brain is, the better retention rate is shown in student learning.
“We take popular music and chants and incorporate them into our educational standards in order to stimulate the brain more,” she said.
“It’s great to see them go from having no idea what we are talking about when we learn a new concept to watching them murmur a song lyric we’ve created and learned and apply it to their education.”
Northside Principal Mandy Ambrose said she was exceptionally proud of Mrs. Jierski. “She pours her heart into creating a classroom environment that is exciting, challenging and full of wonder.”
Ambrose said Jierski regularly takes active approaches towards growing as an educator, bettering herself and her students. “She takes risks and pushes herself to know each and every students’ interests and ever-changing academic needs. Her desire is to be the best that she can possibly be for her students and for Northside as a whole.”
Jierski will represent the Clinton Public School District in the Mississippi Teacher of the Year program this spring hosted by the Mississippi Department of Education.
Meredith Jierski is married to Clinton Arrow Assistant Soccer Coach Cory Jierski and has two children, six-year-old Emma and two-year-old Carson.