Author Archives: Terry Lee Marzell

About Terry Lee Marzell

Terry Lee Marzell holds a bachelor's degree in English from Cal State Fullerton and a master's degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from Cal State San Bernardino. She also holds a certificate for Interior Design Level 1 from Mt. San Antonio College. She has been an educator in the Corona Norco Unified School District for more than 30 years.

NYC STEM teacher Laginne Walker garnered 2024 Sloan Award

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New York City STEM educator Laginne Walker of New York has garnered a 2024 Sloan Award for Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics. Photo Credit: Fund for the City of New York

It is always my pleasure to shine a spotlight on exceptional educators who have earned honors for their work in the classroom. One of these is Laginne Walker, a STEM teacher from New York City. She has garnered a 2024 Sloan Award for Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics.

Laginne teaches STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) courses in Algebra and Computer Science at the Bronx Engineering and Technology Academy. She has worked there for the pat seven years. The school, founded in 2004, was originally funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, but currently is funded with public school monies.

Laginne was raised in a home characterized by diversity and a strong sense of social justice. Her mother, an occupational therapist, emphasized the value of education, while her father, from a military family, taught her the importance of hard work. As a young woman, Laginne attended Lick-Wilmerding, a private high school in San Francisco that enrolled students from diverse backgrounds. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Wesleyan in 2001. She earned her first Master’s degree in Mathematics Education from Brooklyn College in 2006, and a second Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Administration from Pace University in 2007.

As a Master Teacher at Math for America, Laginne has both organized and participated in professional development workshops and courses. Through her hard work and self-determination, she became competent in computer science, which enabled her to create computer science courses for students and establish a computer science curriculum for the school where she teaches.

In addition to her Sloan Award, Laginne has earned several other accolades. She was honored with the UFT Excellence in Education Award for High School in 2020; she was named a FLAG Award for Teaching Excellence semi-finalist in 2020; and she received an honorable mention for the Greater New York City NCWIT Aspirations in Computing Educator Award from the National Center for Women & Information Technology in 2020. In 2019, she garnered a UFT Champions of Computer Science Award.

To learn more, view this three-minute You Tube video.

Iowa English teacher has been named the 2024 Iowa Teacher of the Year

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English teacher Ann Mincks of Des Moines, Iowa, has been named her state’s 2024 Teacher of the Year. Photo Credit: Des Moines public Schools

Our nation is fortunate to have so many outstanding educators working in our public schools. One of these is Ann Mincks, an English Language Learner teacher from Des Moines, Iowa. She has ben named her state’s 2024 Teacher of the Year. The award honors exceptional teachers who have demonstrated excellence in the classroom and who have made a significant impact on both students and colleagues.

Currently, Ann teaches English language learners (ELL) at Hoover High School in the Des Moines Public School District. Her students range in ability levels from emerging to advanced, and span ninth through 12th graders.

During her 16 years as a professional educator, Ann has filled various roles, including working as an instructional coach and as an adjunct professor. Her passion is working with both students and staff to support the language development of all learners. “I believe our actions as educators matter,” Ann declares. “I want students to have an experience that truly breaks down the walls of the classroom and connects students to their future successes in a career and as a community member,” she continues.

Ann earned her Bachelor’s degree in English Education with a minor in Spanish and an endorsement in English Language Learner Instruction from Iowa State University located in Ames, Iowa. That was in 2007. In 2011, she earned her Master’s degree in Education with a Reading Endorsement and a Literacy Specialist Endorsement from Viterbo University located in La Crosse, Wisconsin. To read more about Ann, click on this link to the Des Moines Register.

The Iowa Teacher of the Year program was established in 1958 and is sponsored by the Iowa Department of Education. Educators who are honored serve as ambassadors to colleagues in Iowa’s schools, higher education, and communities.

Texas teacher Caitlin Baumgarten earns Education Leadership Award

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Texas middle school teacher Caitlin Baumgarten has earned a 2023 Julius Glickman Education Leadership Award. Photo Credit: Caitlin Baumgarten

I am always eager to share the story of an outstanding teacher who has earned recognition for their work as a professional educator. One of these is Caitlin Baumgarten, a teacher from Texas who has garnered a 2023 Julius Glickman Education Leadership Award, an honor which recognizes exceptional leadership in the field of education.

Caitlin teaches Social Studies to sixth—eighth graders at A&M Consolidated Middle School in College Station. “I believe in teaching from the heart; in treating students with respect and dignity; in finding new, creative and engaging ways to spark a fire of interest in my students,” declares Caitlin. “In order to be a successful teacher, and to provide the best educational experience for all of my students, each moment in my classroom should be a positive experience for each student,” she asserts.

In addition to creating an engaging classroom environment and bringing history to life for her students, Caitlin enjoys helping other social studies teachers reach their students in new, exciting ways through her podcast, History Teachers Club.

“We history teachers love to say that our lessons ‘make history come alive’ but I have never quite seen that actually happen so much as it does in Caitlin’s classroom,” remarks colleague Daniel Lewer. “Her effort to make history truly come alive go beyond the room transformations and costumes. It fundamentally rests in the engaging lesson and rich content that her students have to wrestle with in her classroom,” he continues.

Caitlin earned her Bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies with an emphasis in English/Language Arts and Social Studies from Texas A&M University in 2016. She also earned a minor in Political Science. She earned her Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Grand Canyon University in 2021.

Humanities Texas, which bestows the Julius Glickman Education Leadership Award, presents annual statewide awards to Texas classroom teachers who have made exemplary contributions in teaching, curriculum development and extracurricular programming.

 

Oscar winners declare importance of music education

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Oscar-winning directors Ben Proudfoot (left) and Kris Bowers (right) pose with student musicians who were their guests at the 96th Oscars Awards ceremony on Sunday, March 10, 2024. Photo Credit: John Shearer, Black Entertainment Television, LLC

Composer and director Kris Bowers delivered remarks about the power and importance of music education during his Oscar acceptance speech on Sunday, March 10, 2024. He was recognized by the Motion Picture Academy for his film The Last Repair Shop, which he co-directed with Ben Proudfoot. The production garnered the Academy Award in the category of Best Documentary Short Film.

“Music education isn’t just about creating incredible musicians,” declared Bowers. “It’s about creating incredible humans,” he said. Bowers went on to explain the importance of music education in a time of increased technology usage by young people. “We’re living in pretty traumatic times and spending less than 30 seconds on Instagram I can feel pretty anxious and depressed,” asserts Bowers. “And you have so many kids that don’t have the tools to process those feelings,” he continued. “The arts are an incredibly important vehicle to communicate through these times.” Proudfoot added, “We hope young people will put down their phones and pick up a saxophone.”

The film’s subject matter shines a spotlight on the inspirational story of a Los Angeles workshop that repairs broken musical instruments that are loaned to over 80,000 public school students free of charge. Los Angeles Unified is the only big city school system that provides free bassoons, trombones, sousaphones, cellos, piccolos, and every other kind of instrument to their student musicians.

In this downtown workshop, a team of four technicians maintain the instruments. The four technicians profiled in the documentary are Dana Atkinson, who repairs stringed instruments; Duane Michaels, who works on woodwinds; Paty Moreno, who repairs brass instrument; and Steve Bagmanyan, who began as a piano tuner but has. now become supervisor of the shop.