BAY MINETTE — Bay Minette Middle School teacher John Hope has been named Alfa Teacher of the Month for December. The 10-year education veteran was selected out of all teachers at public and private institutions in Mobile, Baldwin and Escambia counties.

Alfa presented the award to Hope during an awards ceremony Tuesday evening at the school.

"It is an honor to be selected to represent southwest Alabama as teacher of the month," Hope said. "Teachers work very hard investing in students. They are committed to providing the tools students will need to become successful in later endeavors.

"I am thankful to Alfa for their recognition of the importance of teachers in our society and for their partnership and financial support of local schools."

Hope began his teaching career at Austin High School in Decatur in 1997.

"I taught there for one year. I moved to Baldwin County after marrying my wife, who is a former Baldwin County teacher, and I have taught at BMMS for ten years," he said.

He spent nine years of that teaching social studies and now teaches computer applications. He also teaches a television production class, the students of which deliver the school's morning announcements via a TV broadcast.

"Thanks to Mr. Hope's leadership, the students' morning announcements consistently inform and entertain everyone at BMMS,” Principal Tammie Fleming said. “They perform within a high-quality, constantly changing format.”

Hope also serves as a bus driver, school Web site manager and Technology Student Association advisor.

Hope earned a bachelor's degree in anthropology from the University of Alabama, after which he obtained a master's in education from the University of Montevallo. He earned an educational specialist degree from the University of South Alabama and is writing a dissertation for doctor of philosophy in Instructional Design and Development.

"I need to be a subject-matter expert," Hope said.

He said the most recent venture has improved his teaching skills.

"One of the big ideas in IDD is that if a learner doesn't learn, then it's the fault of instruction, the teacher, materials or delivery system," he said. "It's the teacher's responsibility to provide instruction at the appropriate level for all students. I believe disciplines converge in the real world, and instructional strategies and assessments should require students to integrate knowledge and skills across the curriculum."

He said he feels most rewarded when he is able to pass on the philosophy of hard work and ambition to his students.

"I am most satisfied when students work hard, finish a meaningful project, and experience the fulfillment of achieving a goal," he said.

Alfa's Teacher of the Month program began in 1998, when Alfa Farmers Federation and Alfa Insurance Companies partnered with the Alabama Department of Education to create the Alfa Teacher of the Month Awards, the Alfa Web site states.

The program honors outstanding K-12 public and private school teachers and principals with $1,000 cash awards and $1,000 to their schools.

Eligible teachers must serve full-time in a public, private or parochial school and spend more than half of their time with students in the classroom. Additionally, at time of application, they must have completed at least three complete years of classroom teaching.