{"id":14579,"date":"2025-12-05T09:31:58","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T14:31:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=14579"},"modified":"2025-12-05T09:31:58","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T14:31:58","slug":"citywide-teacher-of-the-year-finalist-amber-crunk-white-oaks-elementary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/citywide-teacher-of-the-year-finalist-amber-crunk-white-oaks-elementary\/","title":{"rendered":"Citywide Teacher of the Year finalist: Amber Crunk, White Oaks Elementary"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
White Oaks Elementary art teacher Amber Crunk is one of five finalists for citywide Teacher of the Year.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Amber Crunk said her job teaching art at White Oaks Elementary is rewarding.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach day, I have the opportunity to inspire students to be curious and confident,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Crunk is a finalist for VBCPS citywide Teacher of the Year.<\/p>\n

Principal Danielle Williams said Crunk touches the lives of each of the school\u2019s approximately 650 students with creativity, kindness and dedication.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe builds a welcoming classroom where every student feels valued, supported and excited to learn.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crunk was inspired by a high school teacher to pursue photojournalism in college. She worked in the field for seven years before deciding to study elementary education.<\/p>\n

Ten years ago, she began her teaching career at Point O\u2019 View Elementary.<\/p>\n

While at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, Crunk said she had \u201ca moment of clarity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was happiest helping my son be creative,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She earned a visual arts credential and became White Oaks\u2019 art teacher in 2020.<\/p>\n

Crunk said making a connection with students helps them become more confident.<\/p>\n

She enjoys the opportunity to allow them to creatively express themselves through a variety of enriching art experiences.<\/p>\n

This past spring they ventured into the school garden with clipboards to make observational drawings of nature.<\/p>\n

Crunk also created an \u201cart zoo\u201d within the classroom, challenging students to draw an array of special guests: \u00a0live animals, including a parakeet, tadpoles, a gecko, hamster and her family pet \u201cPiper.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The English Labrador “Piper” is a certified therapy dog and attends school daily with owner Amber Crunk. The White Oaks Elementary art teacher is a citywide finalist for “Teacher of the Year.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The English Labrador, a certified therapy dog, attends school daily and often provides extra comfort for students in need.<\/p>\n

A \u201cPiper Pass,\u201d may be earned to spend time with the pup.<\/p>\n

Crunk adapts her art lessons to all students, including those with extensive intervention needs, significant delays and some who need a little extra support in inclusion classrooms.<\/p>\n

Her new peer-to-peer art initiative pairs fifth graders with kindergarten and first grade special education students. Students build a positive self-image and gain self-esteem, she said.<\/p>\n

Crunk belongs to several organizations, including Teachers Without Borders, Arts Alliance Virginia, the Virginia Art Education Association, and is the school\u2019s safety patrol advisor and SCA co-advisor.<\/p>\n

She recently won a first-place staff member award in the \u201cSeason of Nonviolence Art and Poetry Contest,\u201d and received a \u201cPearl Award for Visual Arts Teaching Excellence.\u201d<\/p>\n

School counselor Karidah Cotten said Crunk\u2019s influence extends far beyond the walls of her art classroom.<\/p>\n

Crunk radiates creativity, fosters confidence and promotes emotional well-being for students, she noted.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe has an extraordinary gift for reaching the hearts and minds of her students.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Amber Crunk teaches all grade levels at White Oaks Elementary. The citywide Teacher of the Year finalist recently taught third graders how to make clay pinch pots.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Amber Crunk said her job teaching art at White Oaks Elementary is rewarding. \u201cEach day, I have the opportunity to inspire students to be curious and confident,\u201d she said. Crunk […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":14581,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,213],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-staff-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14579","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14579"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14579\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14590,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14579\/revisions\/14590"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14581"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14579"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14579"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14579"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}