Sevierville teacher wins over $27K for extreme classroom makeover

SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Danielle Roderick at Catlettsburg Elementary School won several awards that came with over $27,000 in prize money for an extreme classroom makeover.

On Friday, Oak Ridge Associated Universities selected the 4th-grade teacher as the 2023 Extreme Classroom Makeover grand prize winner of $25,000.

Roderick also won the Viewers’ Choice Award, which offers an additional $2,500.

Using a Jurassic Park theme, Roderick and her students made mockups of the technology she hopes to buy with the award money, including iPads, a 3D printer and more.

“We are looking to start our own podcast, where students can talk about dinosaurs or other topics mentioned in the classroom,” Roderick said in her video. “We can also use that for social and emotional learning, where students learn about kindness and they discuss those topics with other students.”

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