Educator Of The Month: Emily Clark

Emily Clark

Benfield Elementary School

When the dismissal bell rang on a Monday afternoon, a small group of Benfield Elementary School students met in the school gymnasium to practice – for a math competition.

Their leader? Benfield physical education teacher Emily Clark.

“It’s awesome to see a different side of them,” Clark said of watching her students thrive in an environment other than her P.E. class.

Clark has held court in the Benfield gym since 2015, when she sought a change in school location, and moving from the classroom to physical education was the most logical path.

She also discovered while in a graduate program to become a reading specialist that her ideal career wouldn’t keep her sitting in a chair for hours on end.

“That was the tipping point,” Clark said. “I (had) to find something where I can get up and move.”

It’s hard to imagine Clark sitting still, ever.

Upon her arrival at Benfield, she created a dance company and club to provide students with another avenue to move their bodies and grow their confidence. Today, some of her former dancers can be found in Severna Park High School’s “Rock ‘N’ Revival” playbill. With Clark’s coordination, they pay it forward by coming back to their old stomping grounds to assist their younger counterparts.

Perhaps Clark’s hardest-earned achievement at Benfield is the quarter-mile walking path that loops around the field adjacent to the playground.

Clark found that the field was often wet, making it hard to use for her P.E. class, and students avoided it during recess. With the support of her principal, she proposed the idea of installing a path around the field to county officials.

Though her plan was initially denied, Clark was urged to not give up. Eventually, the county invested $60,000 in her vision, and the path is now used daily by Benfield students and parents attending youth sporting events at the field.

Clark didn’t stop with just a path. Using iPads and QR codes, students can track their laps and miles, which have multiplied over the years. She even created a competition to incentivize movement, and she had her students write letters to local businesses of their choice to request prizes for the winners.

Watching her students grow and mature over their years at Benfield is what Clark finds most rewarding about her job.

“I don’t get them for a year; I get them for six,” she said. “Even though my role is P.E., I think it’s more than that. I make it more than that.”

This unwavering dedication to her students’ well-being is what prompted Benfield Principal Sue Myers to nominate her for the 2026 Anne Arundel County Public Schools Teacher of the Year award.

“Mrs. Clark is the kind of educator who inspires, supports and uplifts every child she encounters. … She constantly explores new strategies and programs to ensure every student has the best possible experience,” Myers said in her nomination.

A coach and personal trainer outside of school as well, Clark sometimes finds herself coaching her students’ parents. She believes that this full-circle experience helps set a good example of prioritizing health and wellness.

“However you find joy in moving your body, find it and do it,” Clark said.