08/21/2026
Matt Smith with Hometown Hero Emily Morgan. Great teachers don't just teach the subject on the lesson plan, they build relationships that help kids believe in themselves. This Hometown Hero has built her whole career around that idea, in the very community that raised her.
We're honored to recognize Emily Morgan, a fourth-grade teacher entering her ninth year at Stanfield Elementary School.
Born and raised in Stanfield, Emily says it's incredibly rewarding to now serve the very community that helped shape who she is. Over her nine years in the classroom, she's taken on leadership roles within her school and now serves as a Literacy Champion for Stanly County, supporting reading instruction well beyond her own classroom walls and helping fellow teachers strengthen how they teach it too.
During the 2024-2025 school year, her students exceeded growth expectations in both Math and Reading, and Emily was recognized as a Stanly Star for that work. But for Emily, the test scores are only part of the story.
For Emily, the most meaningful part of teaching is the relationships, building the kind of trust with students and families that creates a classroom where every child feels valued, supported, and capable of success, whether they're just learning to love reading or working through a hard year at home.
Nine years in, Emily says she still feels the same excitement for the classroom that brought her into teaching in the first place, and she credits that to the community that continues to show up for her students right alongside her.
For pouring nine years, and counting, into the students of the community she calls home, we're proud to recognize Emily Morgan as a Hometown Hero.
![Thank you parents [and community] who helped "stuff the fridge" for staff. We have been able to restock twice already, ...](https://img5.schoolandcollegelistings.com/971/600/1490754159716002.jpg)
