Students with musical interests at the high school will most likely be familiar with the school's director of choral arts.

Spencer Wright, who is also the fine arts chair, has been at Dawson County High School for 17 years.

"I've always been the choir director here," Wright said. "I moved into the fine arts department, I've helped with the band, started a guitar program, but mainly I'm chorus."

He is also the 2014-15 Teacher of the Year for Dawson County High School.

"I really feel undeserving of this. There are so many other teachers in this building that are much better than I am," he said. "I'm honored and I feel very blessed, but very undeserving."

Wright said that he chose to teach because of the lasting impression his teachers left on him while growing up.

"I've had a whole lot of teachers that really influenced my life and were positive role models for me," he said. "My parents were always fantastic role models for me, but there were several teachers that just really made an impact on me."

It was because of this giving of their time that Wright wanted to give to the next generation.

"I just wanted to give back and hopefully be a positive influence on somebody, as those people were for me," he said.

Wright said that he wants his students to learn that life, just like music, is a group effort.

"You have to build relationships, especially in music. I try to teach my students every year how to work as a team," he said. "Anything you do, you have to work with people. I try to teach them how to get along with and work with people and how to function as a group."

And because of the subject he teaches, Wright said, that allows him to work best with the students.

"The kids come to me and ... they want to learn. The good thing about what I teach is that it's not required," he said. "They come to this class and they want to learn, and we cut up and laugh and have a good time, but we learn at the same time. It's great, watching them do things that they never thought they could do and seeing the overwhelming response of their achievements."