An Inspirational Educator

Chelsea Byrd is making a difference in Jasper City Schools and in the lives of hundreds of young people.

Words by Blaine Czup | Images by Al Blanton

Chelsea Byrd is a beacon of positivity whose infectious attitude is hard to forget.

Originally from Cuba, Alabama, Chelsea and her family moved to Jasper when she was 10 years old after her dad was hired as the pastor at Northside Baptist Church. Hopping into the city system, Chelsea attended Memorial Park Elementary School, Maddox Middle School, and Walker High School in succession, quickly becoming acclimated with her new home.

Now she admits “Jasper is in my blood.”

“I love Jasper City Schools!” Chelsea says. “We are blessed to have the community and resources we have.”

After completing her high school education, she received her undergraduate degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education with a Special Education certification from Samford University. She later returned to Samford to pursue a master’s degree in Instructional Leadership.

Chelsea’s passion for teaching started at a young age when she would play make-believe, pretending to be a teacher. “Playing school began when my sister and I would visit my aunt in Madison, Alabama,” she says. “She was a teacher and would save all of her ‘extras’—supplies, workbooks, crafts, etc. for us to play with. We would set up their basement as our classroom, complete with student desks. This passing down of supplies and teacher goodies continued until my aunt retired with over 40 years in education.”

Chelsea’s desire to pursue a career in education was further solidified when she worked as a teacher's aide at T.R. Simmons School during her high school years.

She loved Jasper City Schools so much that she came back to the system that raised her after her time at Samford. “My career began in 2011, teaching third grade at T.R. Simmons,” she says. “Two years later, I moved to fourth grade at T.R. When we reconfigured, you stayed in your current grade to move to your new school. That’s how I ended up at Maddox Intermediate.”

She now serves as an instructional coach at Maddox Intermediate, where she does a little bit of everything: from teaching to building lesson plans to strategizing curriculum and being the voice of the teachers to the Maddox administration.

In 2021, she was named Maddox's Teacher of the Year, followed by Jasper City Schools’ Elementary Teacher of the Year. She even became a finalist for the State of Alabama's prestigious Teacher of the Year award that same year.

Chelsea's teaching philosophy centers around positivity and belief in her students. Her motivation comes from her love for Jasper City Schools, the people she works with, and the students she teaches.

"When people believe in you, that's all kinds of motivating. Everybody has greatness within them, and it just looks different in everyone. We do whatever it takes to pull it out," she says. “It’s my motivation just to see (the students) succeed and to see that light click."

Overall, Chelsea considers teaching a calling and feels blessed to work with people with the same passion.

“We just have a great team at Maddox, and I can't imagine being anywhere else or doing anything else. It's so much fun!” she says.

For Chelsea, an average day is her best day, and she is grateful for the opportunity to positively impact her students' lives.

They, too, are thankful for her. 78