Mrinal Joshi is Teacher of the Year for Heritage Elementary School. (CONTRIBUTED)

MADISON – Mrinal Joshi has been selected Teacher of the Year at Heritage Elementary School.

She now teaches math to fifth-graders and English to homeroom students.

This year, Joshi served on the district’s foreign language committee to explore introducing subject matter to elementary students. She has led the award-winning math team four years to state competitions.

Joshi was a committee member for literacy, after-school tutoring and school improvement. She gave Moodle presentations to guests from across the country. She assisted with the 2012 Council for Leaders in Alabama Schools (CLAS) conference at Orange Beach.

“My greatest contribution in education is touching the life of each student who walks into my classroom,” Joshi said. “I’m thrilled by the progress of my web page this year (available from hrtg.madisoncity.k12.al.us).” She posts notes, practice pages and homework — even videos.

Making a difference in students’ lives and their outlook toward math is Joshi’s major reward. Most students are fearful about math but slowly gain confidence during the year. By year-end, many tell her that math is their favorite subject. To augment interest, she presents several methods to solve problems, incorporating wit and humor.

Her parents have been her best teachers, steering her to education for a career. “Whatever I am today is because of their blessing and their guidance,” Joshi said.

In India, Joshi earned bachelor degrees in education and home economics. She received a bachelor’s degree in elementary education at Athens State University and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of Phoenix.

She has taught at Heritage for nine years and for three years in India. She relocated to the United States 16 years ago.

Her husband Sunit works as a software engineer with Intergraph Corporation. Their children are Aarti, 15, a James Clemens High School sophomore, and Shiv, 12, a Liberty Middle School seventh-grader.

Joshi received the Professional Promise Award from Alpha Delta Kappa at Athens State University and the “Outstanding in Education” gold medal in India.