Meet Rosemary Grimm: LAA+ Fellow and Louisiana Elementary Teacher of the Year

As the 2018 Louisiana Elementary Teacher of the Year, Rosemary Grimm represents thousands of educators across the state of Louisiana. As an LAA+ Fellow and fifth grade English Language Arts teacher at Princeton Elementary School in Bossier Parish, she knows firsthand the impact arts integration has on student learning.

Grimm has been an educator in Louisiana since 2004 and has experience teaching third through sixth grade. A native of Spartanburg, South Carolina, she graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education. From there, Grimm earned a M.Ed. in Educational Technology Leadership from Lamar University.

Rosemary Grimm, LAA+ Fellow and Louisiana Elementary Teacher of the Year

She began her career as an educator for Claiborne Parish Schools at Homer Elementary, which at the time did not have music, art, or theater programs. In 2014, Homer Elementary was selected to be part of Louisiana A+ Schools, and the entire faculty received an intensive week-long professional development in arts integration and concept-based learning. LAA+ advocates school wide transformation by training teachers to integrate visual art, dance, theater, and music into the school's curriculum. Grimm saw a transformation in her class and says, "While some teachers did not embrace this change in teaching, I was hooked. I immediately began integrating the arts into my lessons and saw a direct impact of student engagement and learning."

During the school year, Grimm integrated visual and performing arts with the Louisiana Department of Education's ELA Guidebook curriculum. She notes, "Drama became an active way for my students to create and demonstrate understanding. My students were able to make connections between visual art and written text, and abstract concepts became clear."

In 2015, Grimm was given the opportunity to teach at Princeton Elementary School in Bossier Parish Schools. She continued to utilize arts integrated strategies and lessons in her classroom. After just one year in Bossier Parish, she was named the district's Teacher of the Year.

She advanced through the state level Teacher of the Year process, which includes months of preparation, multiple essays, interviews, data analysis of students learning targets, as well as recommendations from peers. Most importantly, she submitted a lesson plan with a corresponding instructional video where evaluators saw Grimm and her students in action, integrating reading and essay writing with visual and performing arts.

Grimm (center) with her daughter and husband at the 2017 Annual Cecil J. Picard Educator Awards Gala in Baton Rouge.

At the 2017 Annual Cecil J. Picard Educator Excellence Awards Gala, Rosemary Grimm was named 2018 Louisiana Elementary Teacher of the Year. She shares, "Being Elementary Teacher of the Year means that I now have a larger platform to advocate for my students and other educators. It also affords me the opportunity to promote issues that are near and dear to my heart."

Since becoming Louisiana's Elementary Teacher, she has spoken on the importance of arts integration at several events including the Aioli Dinner Supper Clubfundraising benefit, several Bossier Parish School Board meetings, and to prospective educators at LSUS. Her 5th grade class even received a virtual visit from First Lady of Louisiana, Donna Edwards.

Rosemary Grimm with LAA+ Chairman of the Board Jacques Rodrigue at the Aioli Dinner Supper Club event in Shreveport, LA. She spoke to guests about her experiences an educator and how she uses the arts to enhance her classroom.

Grimm reflects, "It's been an amazing year, and I continue to be humbled by the experience, but for me, this will always be about the work. A teacher's influence can span generations, and I strongly believe that when instruction is designed in a way that not only improves learning but also improves creativity and self-confidence, that students are impacted in a way that lasts a lifetime."