Havelock teacher receives top honor

Kim Bennett's husband and boss played a trick on her Tuesday.

Out on medical leave from her job as an English teacher at Havelock High, Bennett was told she was needed at the school to sign scholarship papers for students to study in Japan.

When Principal Jeff Murphy met her outside and escorted her onto the stage at the school's performing arts center in front of fellow teachers, students and school officials, she knew she had been tricked.

They surprised her with the news that she had been named Craven County's Teacher of the Year.

"This is a tribute to all the wonderful people who taught me at Havelock High School," said Bennett, a 1984 Havelock graduate.

Murphy said Bennett's quiet integrity and thoroughness in the classroom make her a great teacher.

"I have her teaching the top 12th-graders and the lowest ninth-graders," he said. "She does well on all levels and moves them all along successfully."

Students from Bennett's classes filled the first three rows of the auditorium during the award presentation. The students thanked Bennett, told her they loved her and asked her to return to school. Bennett wiped tears from her face.

"I'm just so honored by this," she said. "It's really about the students I teach."