Teacher of the Year Accused of Theft

(Bennington, Vermont) In September 2011, 32-year-old Chinese language teacher at Leland and Gray Secondary School, Tong Chen, was awarded the Golden Apple as Vermont's Teacher of the Year.

"I teach from the bottom of my heart and I speak to the students in a way I believe in educational philosophies. I believe they can learn and I learn from them. I learn from them how to teach and I teach them how to learn," Chen said.

Sadly, Chen's award is somewhat tarnished by her arraignment this week on charges of theft of $70-worth of merchandise from a supermarket.