Eva Rutiri named Charleston County School District Teacher of the Year

Two years ago, Eva Rutiri was devastated to learn she no longer would have a job teaching high school students at Charlestowne Academy.

Charleston County school leaders were closing five low-performing schools, and Charlestowne Academy was among them. Rutiri worried, but not for long. She found a new position at West Ashley High School, the place she wanted to teach that's just a few minutes from her home.

It couldn't have worked out better, except it has. Rutiri was named Charleston County School District's Teacher of the Year on Tuesday.

"When that door closed, a better door opened," she said between congratulatory hugs and well-wishes. "I'm very thankful. I love the administration (at West Ashley High), but more importantly, it's the students. There's a wealth of diversity and a wealth of talent, and I've been able to tap into that."

Rutiri learned the good news between innings at a RiverDogs baseball game, and the crowd cheered as she threw her hands in the air in celebration.

District officials typically hold a formal banquet to recognize schools' nominees and announce a district winner, but they wanted to do something more fun and less formal this year. They held a casual reception a couple of weeks ago to recognize all nominees, and they were invited to the game. The RiverDogs donated a suite where the finalists, their guests and principals watched the game before and after the big announcement.

This is the second time in three years that a West Ashley High teacher has won this honor, and school Principal Mary Runyon couldn't have been more tickled. She knew of the prior work Rutiri had done to expose students to international education, and she recruited her to West Ashley. She called Rutiri dynamic, effervescent and exuberant.

"She just has a teaching personality that lends itself to drawing students into the fold, and they want to work for her," Runyon said. "She motivates the children. She's always reaching out for something new and stretching."

Rutiri earned her bachelor's and master's degrees from Winthrop University. She's taught Web design, entrepreneurship and computer applications at West Ashley High for two years, and she taught similar courses at Charlestowne Academy.

She spent four years abroad teaching in Malaysia, and she participated in the state's Global Partnership Teacher Exchange Program, which enabled her to teach in Denmark.

Rutiri will receive a one-year lease for a new Volvo from Rick Hendrick Volvo of Charleston, a $500 savings bond from Heritage Trust Federal Credit Union, a gold ring from Jostens, and a print donated by Trident Technical College.

Braeden Kershner, a middle school band teacher at C.E. Williams Middle, was the district's runner-up for Teacher of the Year.

The other three finalists were Jason Kraeger, a second-grade teacher at Pinehurst Elementary; Cynthia Smith, a teacher for gifted and talented students at Buist Academy; and Mary Zena White, a fifth-grade teacher at Pinckney Elementary.