CHARLESTOWN — With the whole school watching, she took the podium and got ready to give her speech. But as she looked into the audience, she saw her students holding up signs with congratulatory messages, which nearly brought a tear to her eye.

But she said she didn’t feel like she did anything special, she was just doing what she loved.

Crystal Merrifield, a fifth grade teacher at Pleasant Ridge Elementary School, was named this year’s WHAS-TV ExCEL and Greater Clark County Schools Teacher of the Year awards recipient. She was presented the award Wednesday.

“I don’t feel like what I do is above and beyond, it’s just natural,” Merrifield said. “But I sure do love my kids.”

Merrifield has taught at Pleasant Ridge for nine years. She said she works hard to create a sense of family in her classroom for all of her students, who she calls academic superstars.

Principal Michelle Dyer said Merrifield exemplifies what education means to the school, the town and the district.

“It’s so many things, it’s hard to pinpoint,” Dyer said. “Her love of children in this profession, her professionalism, I could just go on. She’s an amazing educator, she’s the complete package.”

In her application for the award, Merrifield said she focuses on keeping her students engaged and involved in the classroom while trying to help them enjoy learning.

Superintendent Stephen Daeschner said he thought Merrifield was a teacher who demonstrates what it takes to be a great teacher.

“Crystal is a teacher that provides incredible service, and is a teacher that never ever gets too far away from her kids,” Daeschner said. “And that’s early in the morning, during the day, the evening and even at night. I know what great teachers do, they think about tomorrow’s lesson, they think about how to encourage students and how to motivate them, all with a smile on their face.”

But one of her former students made an appearance just to give her a gift. Gabrielle Gagnon, a sixth-grader at Charlestown Middle School who had Merrifield last year, said she’ll always hold a special place in her heart.

“I think out of all the teachers I had, she’s the one who stood out to me,” Gagnon said. “She’s been there for me, she’s like a best friend, she’s taught me so much and she’s truly the best teacher.”

Gary Roedemeier, a former WHAS-11 news anchor, presented Merrifield with the golden apple that comes with the ExCEL award. He said even with the distractions of cameras and lights in her classroom, the students remained focused.

“You only had to be in that classroom 15 minutes to realize why she deserves this award,” Roedemeier said. “When you saw the engagement of these young people in learning, you knew that she had made it by April of their fifth-grade year second nature to them. The TV cameras went away and they were involved in learning, and that’s what she has given to them.”

As part of the award, Merrifield also received $1,000 from Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities to use in her classroom. She said she plans on using the money to incorporate more technology into her classroom, giving students another interactive way to do projects.

Merrifield said helping educate students is a big part of her life, not just something she does for a paycheck.

“Teaching has never been just a job to me,” Merrifield said. “From the day I started pursuing my teaching degree, it’s a passion. It’s just part of who I am.”