‘Teaching is a calling’: deCarteret’s Dorette Rhoden Henry named Teacher of the Year

Dorette Rhoden Henry, Mathematics and Information Technology teacher at deCarteret College in Manchester, is the 2025-2026 LASCO/Ministry of Education and Youth/ Jamaica Teaching Council Teacher of the Year.

Henry, an accomplished educator of more than 30 years, was bestowed with the honour at an awards ceremony held at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel on Wednesday.

She has taught at the primary and secondary levels, including 26 years dedicated to high school education.

She shared that teaching is a calling, one rooted in the conviction that every child enters the classroom with unique potential that must be nurtured with patience, challenged with purpose, and affirmed with care.

The Principal of the Year award went to Orville Anthony Richards of St Mary Technical School, while Gavin DeRizzo of Vauxhall High School in Kingston received top honours in the category Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

Along with their trophies, the awardees received a cash prize of $120,000 and a variety of gift baskets.

They will also receive an all-expense-paid opportunity to attend the 2026 Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development Conference in Orlando, Florida, scheduled for June 28 to July 1, 2026.

The awards ceremony has been a tradition for more than two decades.

It is led by the LASCO Chin Foundation in partnership with the JTC, and celebrates educators who are transforming classrooms and communities while reinforcing the value of technical and vocational studies as a critical pathway to student success and workforce readiness.

- Sashana Small

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