Mandie Cline was named Alameda Unified Schools District’s (AUSD) 2015-2016 teacher of the year Wednesday, May 11.

Cline is a kindergarten teacher at Ruby Bridges Elementary School. She has been at the school since 2006. According to the district, she was chosen for her passion for arts education, her dedication to community building and her deep support of her students as “whole children.”

“It is an honor to be able to announce that Ms. Cline is our Teacher of the Year,” said Superintendent Sean McPhetridge in a press release. “Her dedication, enthusiasm, and skill are an inspiration to us all.”

In her kindergarten classroom, Cline focuses not only on teaching her young students to master the standards for kindergarten as independent learners, but also on supporting her students’ social and emotional well-being.

“Every moment of every day is geared toward encouraging student engagement, confidence, camaraderie, and peer accountability,” she wrote in her application. “My students are empowered to think independently, critically, and to accept responsibility for individual actions as well as those of the community. I nurture the abilities and strengths of all students and give them tools to better themselves and each other.”

Cline began her teaching career in Cleveland, but has worked for AUSD since 2005. She has a bachelor’s degree in Art & Education, as well as a master’s degree in Fine Art Printmaking. Cline also volunteers to teach art to first through fifth graders at Ruby Bridges during her prep periods because she knows that “visual arts is crucial to a child’s academic and emotional success.” Last year, she also spearheaded an Art Show/Silent Auction that included art from all of the classrooms and raised nearly $3,000 for the school.