2008 Douglas County School District’s Apple Award winner and CPN resident Kristie Krier. Krier, who teaches second grade at CPN’s Timber Trail Elementary School, won the award’s elementary education division. (photo courtesy of Douglas County School District)

by Lisa Crockett

Red carpets, cheering fans, flashbulbs and fabulous prizes. Teaching school is not always this glamorous, but at the Third Annual Apple Awards, teachers were treated like Hollywood royalty. Seventeen finalists who work as teachers all over the county were honored, and Castle Pines North’s (CPN) own Kristie Krier was right at the center of the action.

Krier was this year’s winner of the Apple Award, an honor given to an outstanding teacher in Douglas County by the Douglas County Education Foundation.

“It was one of the best nights of my life,” said Krier, who teaches second grade at Timber Trail Elementary. “We rode to the event in a limousine with a few other teachers and when we got there, we walked down the red carpet and students were standing along the entrance, cheering us on. It was great.”

Colleagues, students and parents nominated teachers for the award. Then, representatives from Douglas County School District, The Douglas County Education Foundation, and the Douglas County Federation narrowed nominees down to 17 finalists.

All finalists, including Krier, were honored at the event and each finalist received an i-Pod shuffle, as well as a round-trip airline ticket to a location of their choosing. Principals from every school represented at the event read tributes to the teachers from their respective schools, and students were able to share their feelings about the teachers via a pre-recorded video presentation. As the winner, Krier also received $3,000.

“These teachers represent some of the best we have to offer students in our District. Their passion for what they do in the classroom is unrivaled,” said Superintendent Jim Christensen. “Congratulations to all nominees and finalists.”

A native of Colorado, Krier received her teaching certificate at the University of Northern Colorado and has spent her entire teaching career in Douglas County, first as a teacher at Bear Canyon Elementary in Highlands Ranch and now at CPN’s Timber Trail.

“Douglas County is such an amazing place to be a teacher; there are so many opportunities to improve your skills,” said Krier. “I really feel like this is a wonderful place to learn how to be a master teacher.”

Krier does her part to help other teachers as well, leading workshops for fellow educators in beginning reading strategies. “It’s wonderful for teachers from all over the district to get together and share ideas. We can take what we learn and implement it in our classrooms right away.”

Krier and her husband, Shane, and their sons Karsen and Noah call CPN home. Among her second grade students is her son Noah. “From 8:50 until 3:50, I’m “Mrs. Krier.” Before and after school, I’m ‘Mom’ again,” she said.

“We love the small-town feeling here; this is the place we want our kids to be,” she said.

In her spare time, Krier is an avid runner. She also spends a lot of time at soccer, flag football, and golf with her boys.

In the future, Krier thinks she may eventually go into educational administration, possibly as a building resource teacher. But for now, she has no plans to change anything.

“I love my job. Teaching enables you to touch so many people.”