LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

« Return to Nominee List

Sarah McCarron-Stewart

Position: Honors and AP Chemistry Teacher
School: Dover High School
School District: Dover School District
City, State: Dover, NH

Support Sarah Leave a comment Get Updates

Sarah McCarron-Stewart was nominated by an anonymous colleague.

"Last year, Sarah took on the monumental task of driving change in our building, accomplishing it almost entirely on her own," said the nominator. 

She noticed that students and staff were feeling burnt out at the end of each marking quarter and came up with the idea of a "reset day" for the entire building. After months of planning and countless hours of her personal time, she brought this vision to life in January. The day was an incredible success! Students and staff engaged in activities that allowed them to play, rest, dance, create, and learn, all made possible through the support of volunteers and community donations.

She is on track to make it happen again this year, and the staff is excited to see how this tradition evolves. Thanks to Ms. McCarron-Stewart, "reset day" is set to become a cherished DHS tradition.

Comments (10)

Bjorn Anderson Posted over a year ago

I'm a parent of two high school students and served as a volunteer at Reset Day this past year. It's so easy to see the mental health challenges faced by this next generation and either despair or complain. Sarah took action and through hard work and tremendous effort has offered a tangible blessing to the Dover community. Reset Day engages students, faculty, and community members and also provides mental health training for all involved. Sarah's work is worthy of respect and recognition!

Niki Trettel Posted over a year ago

Absolutely love this initiative. I would hope there is cause to expand it. I build into my children’s trimesters, wellness days. They are flexible, but I’d like to see them use at least two a trimester. Sometimes one time, half way through the year, is too much of a metric for people to meet.

Jessica Posted over a year ago

I was a volunteer for this years event and saw first hand how engaged the students were in the activities. These young adults had the freedom to create, reflect, laugh and step out of their “norm” in a wonderful way. I’m so grateful I was able to witness how her work has impacted students.

Barbara Burrill Posted over a year ago

Sarah (McStew) has what many schools don’t, and that is passion, empathy, and vision. She cares deeply for her students and her colleagues. She is deserving of this award. Her Reset Program she created has had an incredible impact in the community!

Erin Posted over a year ago

Sarah is such an amazing human that wears a million hats simultaneously and does them all well. I've had the pleasure of being Sarah's friend (and experiencing the beauty of her giant heart for others wellbeing) for years and she is a gift to so many. Sarah enriches the lives of others with her kindness, compassion and problem solving skills. Could not think of a more deserving person!

Danielle Royer Posted over a year ago

Love this day! McCarron continues to be a teachers name brought up in our household often as "the" teacher for my kiddo. Kudos to your hardwork in bringing well roundness to everyone's lives with reset day. ??????

Raegan Posted over a year ago

Well deserved McStew!! ????

Steve Posted over a year ago

The nomination above says it all. “McStew”, as the students call her is a diamond among the many gemstones that our school district is lucky to have. She’s a colleague and a friend, and very deserving of this recognition.

Annah Posted over a year ago

As a parent in the school district, I really appreciate the effort that Sarah put into this awesome initiative.

Ellen Andrick Posted over a year ago

This woman, mom, teacher, advocate, community member is a gift to us all. She noticed a problem and set out to address it. Along the way she pulled in support from faculty, administration, students, parents, and community members and businesses. Her vision, fortitude, and energy are a gift to this community! Thank you Sarah for your efforts to organize and orchestrate. DHS and the Dover community are grateful for you!