Karen Tharrington is the 2008 FLANC Higher Education Teacher of the Year! Karen is Program Coordinator for Spanish Teacher Education at NCSU. Her broad experience as a foreign language educator equips her superbly for her current responsibilities. Her students at NC State will one day teach small children, adolescents, and adults, and Karen knows what they will face, having been both an elementary and high school teacher. She continues to volunteer in projects that help teachers around the state. Karen has always stood out for being passionate about her profession and for mastering a wide array of teaching methods in order to reach as many students as possible. Thanks to her current position as a teacher of teachers, she will be reaching countless students for decades to come. (Source.)