Riverside High Business Teacher Recognized by SC ATLL
Jon Moldovan, a business teacher at Riverside High, is the South Carolina Association for Teaching, Learning, and Leading (SCATTL) Induction Teacher of the Year. The announcement was made at the association’s Visible Learning 2.0 Conference.
“Jon Moldovan represents everything we want for our students – hard work, creativity, and a genuine commitment to helping every student succeed,” said Riverside High principal Darah Huffman. “He builds a classroom where students don’t just learn content, they apply it to real-world situations and truly thrive. Jon cares deeply about his students, and that shows in the relationships he builds and the results we see. We are incredibly proud to have him at Riverside and grateful for the impact he is making every day.”
Mr. Moldovan is part of the Greenville Alternative Teacher Education (GATE) Program, which provides a pathway into the classroom for professionals entering education from other careers. Before becoming a teacher, he served nine years in the United States Army as a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division and later built a successful career in the corporate sector, helping lead multi-million dollar marketing agencies.
“I feel so blessed to receive this recognition,” he said. “After serving in the military and then working in the corporate world, I knew I was missing that sense of purpose and impact. The GATE program gave me an opportunity to step into a career as a teacher while changing the trajectory of my life in a way I never could have imagined.”
Through his nontraditional path, he brings real-world experience into the classroom, helping students connect their learning to life beyond school. He credits the GATE program and the mentors and colleagues who supported him for helping him successfully transition into education. Mr. Moldovan is currently pursuing a Master of Education degree at Clemson University and expects to graduate this fall.
His application for this award was submitted after he was selected as one of the district’s Induction Teachers of the Year during the 2024-2025 school year.
