Special to the Banner-News
Whitney Lauren Neill was recently selected as the Central Elementary School 2024 Teacher of the Year.
Whitney teaches Special Education at Central Elementary.
She is originally from Waldo, AR and attended elementary school there through second grade.
She began third grade at Eastside Elementary School and graduated from Magnolia High School in 2004. Once a Panther always a Panther!
Outside of her wonderfully unique children at Central, she has three children of my own that attend Magnolia Schools. Rayleigh, 17; Olivia, 12; and Parks, 8. Rayleigh plays softball and volleyball for the Lady panthers, Olivia plays volleyball for the Lady Panthers and is in the Advanced Women's Choir, Parks plays various sports at the Boys and Girls Club, so the majority of her time is spent enjoying extracurricular activities!
Her passion for Special Education began in 2009 when she worked as a preschool teacher for Magnolia Specialized Services.
In 2012, she decided to make this passion a lifelong career and began classes at Southern Arkansas University.
Whitney graduated in 2015 with a Bachelor's in Early Childhood Education.
In 2017, she received my Master's in Special Education from Southern Arkansas University.
She worked with children with disabilities at Magnolia Specialized Services until she started her journey at Central Elementary in the fall of 2019.
Whitney believes that ALL students, neurodivergent and neurotypical, deserve access to the same curriculum, held to the same high expectations, and delivered the same high-quality and research-based instruction.
She takes pride in teaching and tries her best to instill a love for learning in all her students. Being selected as Central's Teacher of the Year is an honor she considers one of her greatest accomplishments!