Tanya Travis, a 5th grade teacher at Choptank Elementary School, has been named the Dorchester County Public Schools Teacher of the Year for 2025-2026, at its recent Awards Night Gala.
A graduate of North Dorchester High School, Ms. Travis earned a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in addition to holding a Master’s degree + 30 hours from Salisbury University. She is in her 16th year of teaching for DCPS, all at Choptank Elementary.
“I'm thrilled to be named Teacher of the Year and can't wait to represent our county. I would not be here to support my students if I wasn't supported by so many amazing people!”
Ms. Travis will now represent Dorchester County as part of the Maryland State Department of Education’s Maryland Teacher of the Year program.
The Early Excellence Educator of the Year, formerly the First Class Teacher of the Year, is Hurlock Elementary School 2nd grade teacher Robin Dukes. This award honors a teacher of exceptional promise who is in their first three years of teaching. A native of Dorchester County, Ms. Dukes began her career in education as an Instructional Assistant at Hurlock in 2017. With the help of the DCPS tuition reimbursement program, she earned her degree and teaching certificate from Wilmington University while remaining at Hurlock Elementary.
“I am truly very honored to have been selected to receive this award, especially being among such other wonderful nominees. I love teaching - it's definitely my passion and I am just so grateful for the recognition.”
Dorchester County Public Schools is grateful for the strong support given by local businesses and organizations for its Teacher of the Year programs, including the free use of a car for the year for the Teacher of the Year from the Hertrich Family of Automobile Dealerships as well as a laptop from Data Networks.
This year, DCPS also presented four new Team Awards, honoring both teaching and non-teaching staff. The Community Connections Award went to Tina Morris, Community School Liaison at Cambridge-South Dorchester High School; the Impact Award honoree was Victoria Bradley, Instructional Assistant at Maple Elementary School; the Leadership Award winner was Jessica Collins, School Counselor at Cambridge-South Dorchester High School; and the Service Above Self Award went to Linda Barnes, Assistant Principal, North Dorchester Middle School.
Dorchester Educators, the organization representing educators and support professionals within DCPS, also sponsored the event and presented their annual award for Education Support Professional of the Year. This year’s honoree was Karen Hopkins, Attendance Secretary, at Maple Elementary School. The award was presented by Katie Cole, President of Dorchester Educators, Crystal Cephas, ESP Vice President, and Deanna Green, Treasurer.
Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jymil Thompson said, “Our schools have an enormous impact on the future of Dorchester County, and we’re delighted to be able to recognize just a few of our staff who regularly go above and beyond in service to their students and their colleagues.”
Dorchester County Public Schools is grateful for the strong support given by local businesses and organizations in our recognition of exceptional DCPS team members who serve the community through serving our schools.
