From staff reports:

Twin Lakes Elementary School teacher Timothy McClung has been named the UW Tacoma Distinguished Alumnus for 2010. McClung teaches the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) class for third through fifth grade and is the school’s coordinator for its accelerated reader program.

UW Tacoma’s Distinguished Alumni Award pays tribute to successful UW Tacoma graduates who have set themselves apart by making significant contributions to career achievement, for inspiring excellence in others, for having a long-lasting impact in their business and the community and for demonstrating a visible commitment to the well-being of others.

McClung also received the 2010 Twin Lakes Elementary Teacher of the Year Award and was one of eight finalists for the Federal Way School District Teacher of the Year Award.

Guy Gamble, principal of the Twin Lakes Elementary School in Federal Way, said, “Tim is absolutely one of the best GATE teachers I have ever had the honor of working with in my 20-odd years in education.”

McClung received his bachelor of arts in liberal studies from UW Tacoma in 1993. Although he’d previously enjoyed a successful career in the construction industry, McClung left the profession to pursue teaching, earning his master in teaching degree from City University in 2003.