On February 23, 2026, business teacher Scott Beaver was announced as Lafayette’s Teacher of the Year.

“Did you know we actually have a magician among us?” math teacher Kevin O’Gorman wrote for  a speech. “He goes by the mystical name of Mr. Scott Beaver. Mr. Beaver magically creates a classroom environment that welcomes all with sincerity, pushes all to reach their maximum potential, and encourages all to persevere through tough situations in and out of the business realm, and it is my distinct honor today to speak on his behalf for Teacher of the Year.”

Teachers and alumni have congratulated Beaver for this achievement.

“Congratulations!!” secondary science teacher Sarah Scerba wrote in a comment under Principal Karen Calcaterra’s Teacher of the Year Instagram post.

“Well Deserved!!!” former Lancer Alexander Wier wrote under the same thread.

For his peers, Beaver stands out for his commitment to student connection and making school more meaningful and exciting for his students.

For students and alumni, Beaver has served as an inspiration and a mentor, helping to kickstart student-run businesses.

“The GOAT, well deserved. Congrats @mrbeaverlhs you have inspired so many young lives and will only continue to do so!” the Cotton Candy Sports Cards Instagram account commented under Calcaterra’s post.

Cotton Candy Sports Cards is noted by O’Gorman as having generated over $20,000 as a student-run business started by Lafayette alumni.

O’Gorman cited senior Katie Piercy in his speech: 

“Mr. Beaver is a builder of belonging with his booming energy.  He has guided me through the highs and lows of high school. No one has made a difference like Mr. Beaver. With [his] guidance and support, I now know that I want to attend college with a major in business, being the first in my family to even attend college. Mr. Beaver is my role model.”

Here’s what Beaver had to say about his selection:

How were you nominated for Teacher of the Year?

“My good friend, Mr. O’Gorman, nominated me for Teacher of the Year. We teach a class together called AMPED, which is a business and math class, and I think we both really respect what the other person does. He was nice enough to nominate me. He [nominated me for] different things, like building relationships with students, checking in on them, trying to make it exciting, [and] things like that.”

Are there any things you do for that class that are special?

“In that class in particular, we have a couple projects that really combine math and business together so that students can understand why they’re learning it.”

Are there any activities you particularly enjoy?

“One of my favorites is an air skimmer. For the business side, we’re learning about the design cycle… so students create and manufacture their own air skimmer. Then we launch them, we take data on them, and then they have to do the algebra skills that we learned with them [to] calculate distance, grade time, and things like that.”

Are there any things, as a teacher, that you personally hold strongly to, that you emphasize over everything else?

“I think any good teacher emphasizes relationships over anything else. Getting to know your students, that’s why I became a teacher. I had a couple teachers that invested in me, and so I always wanted to kind of give back in that way. I think just learning about students, what ways they learn best, talking about the weekends, is so important. I think if you do that, students will warm up to the subject and warm up to what you’re doing.”

Do you enjoy teaching business?

“I love teaching business because it’s so relevant to students. everything that we’re doing, I think, can be applied to the everyday, you know, to your everyday life. I teach a lot of entrepreneurship classes, so I love helping students come up with their own idea and helping them launch it. I think that’s so cool to see them really develop a passion for entrepreneurship, giving them the courage to pitch it to a competition and try to win money. I think that process is so cool. I think I have the best job in that I could help students create, and sometimes they create something and it keeps going with them even after they graduate, and I love hearing those updates. Business is awesome. it’s, it’s just so relevant, and it can be so fun for students, so it’s good.”

Any closing thoughts?

“I would say that it is such an honor to be selected by your peers. I was telling my family about some of the other candidates, and they’re like, you won? How did you win? Because [the others] are awesome. We have so many good teachers, [and] it means so much that other people respect what you do… I’m just thankful for that opportunity.”