CRTC Teacher Named NH CTE Teacher of the Year


Longtime Concord Regional Technical Center Education & Behavioral Science teacher Valerie Koch has been named New Hampshire’s Career and Technical Education Teacher of the Year. Ms. Koch, who is a past graduate of the CRTC Education program, has been instructing future teachers and behavioral scientists at the CRTC since 2001.


“This teacher is without a doubt a statewide leader in truly adopting competencies into every aspect of her program,” NH CTE President Jennifer Hasken said when the award was presented at the Summer Learning Series event in Portsmouth in August. “She has taken her program from one that had marginal targets to a cutting edge program reflecting the best of CTE, including expanding the dual enrollment offerings to 16 college credits and providing extensive internships.”


Ms. Koch has been teaching at the CRTC since 2001, and is an adjunct faculty member for Southern New Hampshire University's School of Education and facilitator of the NH CTE Summer Curriculum Institute for new teachers. She also is state president of the NH chapter of Educators Rising, a national career and technical student organization (CTSO) that sponsors local and national conferences and competitions and is dedicated to helping the next generation of teachers reach their full potential.


Ms. Koch also served as program coordinator for the Concord South chapter of End 68 Hours of Hunger, a non-profit organization set up to meet the needs of elementary school children suffering from food insecurity, and in 2017 she was named the Distinguished Educator for the Concord School District. 


“It means so much to be recognized and honored for this work,” Ms. Koch said recently. “I love how dynamic and ever-changing CTE is. In order to meet the needs of my students, my college partners, and the profession, I am constantly learning and making improvements to my program.”


Ms. Koch works tirelessly with every student (and family) to provide a personalized version of college and career planning, CRTC Principal Steve Rothenberg said. She is leading our faculty in rewriting and restructuring the center’s professional skills model, and at a statewide level she designed and leads the ALT IV Boot Camp, which facilitates the transition to the CTE classroom for approximately 30 new CTE teachers per year, he added.


“Val is, without doubt, deserving of this statewide award,” Mr. Rothenberg said. “Her commitment to not just her students, but also to the CRTC faculty and CTE teachers statewide is without match. There is no single teacher in the state who has done more for CTE.”


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