Laura Phillips & Gayle Gremillion

Gayle Gremillion (left)  .  Laura Phillips (right)

 

Neither of them knew quite how to tell the other at first. Two sisters, both teachers in Beaufort County.not that they are particularly competitive with each other, but it was a happy coincidence when both Laura Phillips and Gayle Gremillion were presented with 2009-10 Teacher of the Year awards at their respective schools. 

"It's an extreme honor," said Gayle, who teaches humanities at Beaufort Middle School. "I am being recognized by my peers for not only the devotion to the kids, but to the school and to my peers. I'm at the school from 5 o'clock in the morning until the last meeting is out, and then I go home and do more. I think they recognize and respect what I do for the classroom."

Laura, the literacy coach at Okatie Elementary School, concurs in that it is a great honor, and thinks part of the reason she was singled out is because of her dedication. "All the other teachers have to do is ask me when they need help," she said. "If I don't have what they need at the school, I go out and get it. I try to provide them with a huge amount of support, and to validate what they do."

The sisters grew up in a military family and were on the move for much of their childhood, but they consider Beaufort their hometown; Gayle is now teaching at the same school she graduated from. After marrying a serviceman herself, she had the opportunity to see and live in many other parts of the world, and these experiences have had a great impact on the way she teaches. For example, in Japan she saw a culture that embraced education, with children going to school six days a week while parents gave them support and instilled the idea that it's an honor to go on to higher education. Gayle's goal was to bring that dedicated approach to learning back to the United States, as well as to expose her students to the diversity that exists on our planet.

"Respecting other cultures became very important to me," she said. "I try to give that back to kids through the humanities."

Laura, on the other hand, didn't have to travel the world to discover her vocation. "I've always had a desire to be a teacher," she said. "When we were little I always wanted to play school, and if my brothers and sisters didn't want to play, I would set up my dolls." She began teaching in 1978 in Virginia, later did a stint at a Dallas school, and finally wound up back in the Lowcountry, where she took the job at Okatie Elementary in 2006.

"I think I can say that I touch every single child in that school, in a positive way I hope," said Laura, who works directly with students, as well as with other teachers on how to more effectively instruct reading and writing.

"There's nothing better than watching a little child who finally gets it. A light bulb goes on in their brain and they start laughing as they're reading to themselves because they realize it's more than just words on a page. That's the rewarding part for me."

*Up Close*

Hobbies: Gayle-surfing, fishing, being outside, going to the beach
Laura-reading, cooking, baking, sewing, going to the beach
What they're into right now: Laura-cupcakes; she recently made some that looked like spaghetti and meatballs
Gayle-traveling; she just got back from Germany and dreams of going to Australia
How they support each other: Laura needed Gayle's help when she first came to the district and didn't know who was who or what was what; Gayle frequently calls upon Laura's "literacy knowledge" and picks her brain for book recommendations
Their depiction of themselves as sisters: Laura's the station wagon, Gayle's the motorcycle