MIRAMAR, Fla. ā Every year, Local 10ā²s Tribute to Teachers campaign recognizes the best educators in South Florida, with only five honorees selected from hundreds of nominations.
Sheketha Ellison has been teaching special education at Glades Middle School in Miramar for 18 years.
āThese are my babies as you can see, and I just canāt imagine doing anything else,ā Ellison said.
Ellison is known for inspiring her students with her positive attitude toward teaching.
āShe is a great compass for us and a great anchor to bring us back and make sure that in everything that we do we are advocating for all children,ā Principal of Glades Middle School Ricardo Santana said.
Ellisonās life is marked by what she does for others. Sheās not only a special education teacher, sheās a special needs mom.
āI had the wonderful privilege of actually adopting my kids out of foster care. I have a son and a daughter, my son has Down syndrome and they are the reason why I keep going,ā Ellison said.
Ellison is among a select group of South Florida educators receiving recognition from the Tribute to Teachers campaign.
The recognition also comes with a $1,000 gift card from Publix Super Markets.
Ellison is known to her colleagues as the schoolās leadership coach. She plans on being with them for a few more years before she retires.
āIt also shows that the work that Iām doing is not in vain ā that Iām actually touching the lives of my students which is my ultimate goal,ā Ellison said.
RELATED: To see the stories of all the winners, click here.