Mark Cuddy
Park Middle School
7th Grade English Teacher
Nominated By: Principal Charlotte Everts
Ask Mark Cuddy how he is doing in the hallway, and he will respond "Every day is a good day at Park Middle School." The thing is, he means it. For over 30 years, from Everett Junior High to Park Middle School, Mr. Cuddy has been educating the multiple generations of scholars who have entered his English classroom. A gifted storyteller, Mr. Cuddy has an uncanny ability to take the learning that is happening in the curriculum and weave it with real-life encounters to teach lessons that reach far beyond the walls and help students become better versions of themselves.
Mr. Cuddy holds all students to incredibly high expectations and truly believes that with grit, perseverance, and a willingness to accept help, anyone can meet them. As teaching and learning have changed and evolved over the years, Mr. Cuddy has taken it all in stride and met the challenges with a positive attitude and openness to learn. Mr. Cuddy has been the favorite teacher of many students, an inspiring coach to student-athletes, a wise mentor to new teachers, and a dependable colleague to all who have worked alongside him. It is not just the number of years, but the deep dedication to the community in those years, that makes Mark Cuddy an irreplaceable, durable thread woven into the fabric of Park Middle School.