Briarcrest Christian High School faculty member Steve Tackett of Cordova recently received the Distinguished Classics Teacher Award from the Tennessee Classical Association at the Tennessee Foreign Language Conference in Franklin.

Each year the members of the Tennessee Classical Association, which is comprised of classics teachers in Tennessee at both the high school and college levels, have an opportunity to nominate a teacher for the Distinguished Latin Teacher Award. Qualities that are necessary for consideration are involvement in organizations, such as the Junior Classical League, and attendance at conventions; student achievement in competitions and on examinations, such as the National Latin Exam and A.P Latin exams and students who continue their work in the classics in college. Letters of nomination and/or support are submitted to a committee which then determines the recipient of the award.

Tackett stated, "I had no knowledge that I had been nominated, so the result was a very pleasant surprise."

Dr. Chris Craig, Classics professor at UT-Knoxville, who presented the award, said, "Steve Tackett was genuinely delighted, in his unassuming humble way, to receive the TCA teaching award."