Beth Christofferson described the exciting experience as the gift of a lifetime.

The Pixie Hill Preschool of Mercer Island director, who will leave her post at the end of June, was the center of attention during a surprise outdoor celebration at the school on May 21. Christofferson was caught off guard when she noticed a coterie of people on hand — including her students, husband and children — before she received the Exceptional Educator award from board members of the Mercer Island Preschool Association (MIPA).

“I was extremely surprised. I was completely shocked,” said Christofferson, who’s also the school’s lead pre-kindergarten teacher.

In describing the selection process for the awardee, MIPA board members noted that heaps of people throughout the Mercer Island preschool community submitted letters of praise and love for their educators. MIPA has bestowed the honor upon educators since 2005 and Christofferson is the third Pixie Hill teacher to garner the award.

“The Exceptional Educator award is presented to an individual who has made extraordinary contributions to our preschool community. After such a tough year, it was a delight to read about so many deserving educators in our community and we were honored to present the award to Beth Christofferson at Pixie Hill,” a MIPA statement reads.

Christofferson has spent seven years at Pixie Hill in copious roles, such as director, administrator, board president and instructor. She began her Pixie Hill journey as a volunteer in 2014, and her two children later attended the school.

She’s sad to leave the Pixie Hill community, but is thrilled to begin a new direction in her career. She’s passionate about working with young children and supporting them in their development of strong social/emotional skills.

“I feel called back to kindergarten or first grade, hopefully for the Mercer Island School District to work on that again,” said Christofferson, who formerly worked at Island Park Elementary. “Specifically what’s next is just leading with my heart and seeing what opportunities are out there. I’ve been working on my master’s degree with a focus in literacy and dyslexia education, and so I’m enjoying working on that.”

Christofferson attended Island schools her whole life and concluded her local education by graduating from Mercer Island High School (MIHS) in 2003. The basketball and soccer star — who won the MIHS athlete of the year honor one year — continued her studies and played one year of hoops at Jacksonville University in Florida before returning to the Puget Sound area to attend Pacific Lutheran University (PLU). She hit the basketball court for one year at PLU and continued to hit the books for the remainder of her time there, graduating with a degree in elementary education in 2007.

After completing her studies at PLU, Christofferson launched into her teaching career as a pre-kindergarten instructor at a Snoqualmie private school for one year, and then moved on to Island Park Elementary in 2008. She began her time at Island Park by giving one-on-one social/emotional support to kindergarten students, and then taught first-graders there from 2010-15.

It’s been a satisfying and emotional ride for Christofferson during her time in the education realm.

“I love Mercer Island so much, and I just smile and get teary eyed when I think about the community and the people here and the children here and the educators here,” she said. “I really believe in all of the schools on Mercer island, both private and public, where I’ve chosen to work.”

Christofferson sports a robust teaching philosophy, which includes connecting with each child authentically along their learning path and igniting the spark inside each child that’s waiting to be nurtured and blossomed.

She’s driven to help children find their independence and develop a passion to engage with and direct kindness to one another.

“I love the idea of making the world better than we found it,” she said. “And I love the joy that my students and myself feel when we’re reaching our potential.”

Beth Christofferson (top left) enjoys her surprise celebration after receiving the Mercer Island Preschool Association Exceptional Educator award on May 21. Photo courtesy of Rachel Bermudez