During most of the all-day event, Brew sat among his colleagues for the educational components and the routine paper work. There was a brief period in the day, however, when he was asked to separate himself from the crowd.

That time came when Michael Convery, assistant superintendent for Coventry Schools, took to the podium. Convery stood before the crowd and spoke about one of the teachers from the district who had been selected as this year’s "district teacher of the year."

"He was so vague and so generic that it could have been anyone that he was talking about, so I had no idea that it was me that he was describing," Brew said. "Even when he called my name, I do not think it really registered, because I remember just kind of looking around at the other people at my table and them having to be like, ‘It’s you. Go up there.’

"It was a good thing that the table where I was sitting was so close up to the front because, if it was any further, I do not think I would have been able to get there," he said. "I guess I was just completely shocked."

Brew said Convery asked if he wanted to say a few words, but, at the time, he could barely walk — never mind get any words out. Brew said it was just too difficult, considering the prestige of the honor.

Brew had been selected as Coventry High School’s teacher of the year by a team of department heads, the school’s technical assistant, union representatives and administrators. Michael Hobin, principal of Coventry High School, said, when considering candidates, committee members look at teachers’ content knowledge, their ability to go outside the box and their commitment to the task.

"It is so important for our teachers to be great instructors," Hobin said, "because, if the teachers are not giving great instruction, the kids are not getting great instruction."

He said the committee also considers teachers who do things that might not necessarily fall within their job descriptions, who are supportive of the school and the students, and who are active contributors.

Members of the committee make suggestions on possible candidates based on those criteria and then, through a process of elimination, select just one from the pool of 182 teachers at the school, Hobin said.

Brew stood out from the crowd at this step in the process as well, Hobin said, and normal procedure was set aside as the committee unanimously decided on Brew to receive this year’s honor.

"There were about half a dozen names mentioned initially, but, as we discussed it, it became evident that he [Brew] was the one," Hobin said. "There wasn’t anyone else that the committee felt deserved it more, which should really say something for him because he rose to the top of 182 teachers."

Not only did Brew rise to the top of 182 teachers, but also, once he was elected as the Coventry High School teacher of the year, his application was put forth for the district teacher of the year honor. At that level, he was competing against seven other schoolwide winners – one each from the middle school and the town’s six elementary schools.

Hobin, a member of the district committee, said the committee uses criteria similar to those used at the individual school level, a scoring sheet and rubrics to make its decision. Again, he said, Brew stood out.

"I knew sending it in that it was a strong application so I hoped that he would win," Hobin said. "But you never know."

Once the decision was made, Hobin and the rest of the committee were informed. However, Hobin said, he had to abstain from announcing the good word that one of his teachers had won the honor until the teachers’ first day of school.

"This is top secret information," he said.

Now that the pressure is not so direct or so immediate, Brew said, he is able to respond to the win and he feels it is a tremendous honor.

"This building is so full of fantastic educators, it is just beyond me to be singled out," he said. "I feel very fortunate just to be a part of such a wonderful group."

Brew teaches 10th-grade biology and two senior electives – aquatic ecology and forensics.

He’s been a teacher at Coventry High School for seven years but has been an educator for nearly 13. Prior to coming to Coventry High School, he said, he worked as a biologist at the Blackstone River and at Bryant College.

In addition to teaching at the high school, Brew also offers his time as a junior varsity baseball coach, as a member of the school improvement team and as a chaperone for a variety of extracurricular activities.