Category Archives: Education

AR teacher Ashley Anderson garners coveted Milken Educator Award

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Arkansas middle school teacher Ashley Anderson has garnered a coveted 2023 Milken Educator Award. Photo credit: Milken Educator Awards

Many outstanding teachers who work in our nation’s public schools deserve recognition. One of them is Ashley Anderson, a middle school teacher from Greenbriar, Arkansas. She has garnered a prestigious 2023 Milken Educator Award.

Teacher Magazine has described the Milken Educator Awards as the “Oscars of Teaching.” In addition to a $25,000 cash prize and public recognition, the honor includes membership in the National Milken Educator Network, a group of more than 3,000 exemplary teachers, principals, and specialists from all over the country who work together to strengthen best practices in education. To learn more, click on Milken Educator Awards.

Ashley teaches English to six graders at Greenbriar Middle School. A creative and innovative educator, she designed a unique sixth-grade course based on the RISE model (Resilient in Schools and Educators). Her curriculum resulted in amazing growth in her students on classroom assessments. Furthermore, Ashley works collaboratively with Special Education teachers on her campus to ensure the curriculum is accessible and challenging for all her learners. Her inclusive strategies are used throughout Greenbrier Middle School. And just to give her students an extra layer of support, she volunteers many unpaid hours in her school’s after school tutoring program.

Student success is the driving factor of much of Ashley’s energy. Each year, she assists in the coordination of the Greenbrier Games, an Olympic-style event that gets students excited about upcoming testing. She also decorates floats for family and community night, and sends encouraging pre-testing videos to staff, students, and families. She organizes “Walk in My Shoes” nights, during which fifth graders come to the school to meet teachers, tour the school, and learn more about their upcoming middle school transition.

In addition to her work with youngsters, Ashley mentors first-year teachers, and she is an active member of the district’s leadership team, curriculum committee, and literacy Professional Learning Community (PLC).

Ashley earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Arkansas Tech University in 2018.

Oregon teacher Caryn Anderson garners OnPoint Prize for Excellence in Education

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Elementary teacher Caryn Anderson of Portland, Oregon, garnered on OnPoint Prize for Excellence in Education award. Photo credit: OnPoint

It is always a pleasure for me to share the story of an outstanding teacher who has earned recognition with their work with young people. One of these is Caryn Anderson, a fourth grade teacher at Abernathy Elementary School located in Portland, Oregon. Caryn has garnered an OnPoint Prize for Excellence in Education award.

Caryn has been an educator since 1999, and she has taught at Abernathy for eight years. She says her passion for workin with children comes from the students in her classroom. Caryn also says balances individualized student attention with an inclusive classroom environment. Over the years, she revealed, she came to understand that she was too absorbed in delivering her lessons. This caused her to shift her focus to building community first.

This Chalkboard Champion says her connection with her students fosters not just academic, but also emotional growth. “I have found new meaning in what I do every day and the purpose behind my work and the importance of it,” she declares. “This (award) is for all of the students who grew up like me that didn’t have a place, that they didn’t have a community who saw who they were,” she continues. “And so, the work that I do is for them and for all the other students who are allies and support in this work,” she concludes.

Caryn is one of four teachers in Oregon who have been recognized with an OnPoint award. The other three recipients were Lucas Dix of Milwaukee, Oregon; Willie Williams of Portland; and Samuel Platt of Bend. As part of the award, all four honored teachers will have their mortgage paid for an entire year. In addition, each teacher’s school will receive a $2,500 donation. To learn more about the OnPoint Prize for Excellence in Education, visit OnPointcu.com.

 

UT Media Specialist Lara Rude garners 2023 Excellence in Teaching Award

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Middle school Media Specialist Lara Rude has garnered a 2023 Excellence in Teaching Award from the Utah Education Association. Photo credit: Park City School District

Among our nation’s Chalkboard Champions are many outstanding Teacher Librarians. One of these is Lara Rude, a middle school Media Specialist from Park City, Utah. She is one of ten educators in her state who have received a 2023 Excellence in Teaching Award from the Utah Education Association.

Lara works with sixth and seventh graders at Ecker Hill Middle School in the Park City School District. Among her co-workers, Lara has a reputation for promoting a love for reading and literacy that influences the entire school community. For example, Lara established a “One Book, One School” program on her campus. In this program, all students read and discuss the same story. In addition, Lara arranges for authors to visit the school, fostering a deep connection between students and reading.

Lara has a profound passion for students and for reading, especially now, during a time when book banning is becoming more and more prevalent. “I love the kids, they are the best, and I love helping them find books that they want to read,” she declares. “I feel that everyone has the right to read what they choose to read. Clearly, we need boundaries with age levels, but I also think it is so important for kids to see—we call it windows and mirrors—books that you see yourself in, but also books that allow you to see other people,” she continues.

In a career that spans 27 years, Lara has spent five of them as a Media Specialist. She inaugurated her career as a Special Education teacher.

Educator Ruth Chickering Clusen was also a capable public servant

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High school educator Ruth Chickering Clusen was also a capable politician and public servant. Photo credit: Wisconsin Conservation Hall of Fame

Throughout our history, many accomplished educators have also distinguished themselves as civic leaders and political activists. Such is certainly the case with Ruth Chickering Clusen, a high school teacher who also served as the President of the League of Women Voters and as an Assistant Secretary in the US Energy Department.

Ruth Chickering was born in 1922 in the little town of Bruce, Rusk County, Wisconsin. Upon her high school graduation from Eau Claire, she enrolled at the University of Wisconsin, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education. Even before graduating from college, Ruth was working as a teacher. She spent her first two years teaching on the Blackfoot Indian Reservation in Montana, and she taught in public schools in the Green Bay area from 1947 to 1958.

Ruth met her future husband, Donald Clusen, when he was interviewed by her father for a teaching position at the old Wisconsin School for Boys in Waukesha County.They married a few years later, and later settled with their two daughters in Green Bay, where Donald had accepted a position as a teacher at the state reformatory.

Ruth served as the president of the League of Woman Voters. She served in this capacity from 1974 to 1978. During those years, Ruth worked to bring environmental issues to national attention. She was especially concerned with water purity, particularly the condition of Green Bay, where water pollution was pervasive. Ruth also campaigned for women’s rights, working tirelessly but unsuccessfully to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. During the election year, she moderated debates between candidates Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford.

Once Carter was elected president, he appointed Ruth Assistant Secretary of Energy, a position she held from 1978 to 1981. There she worked to reduced fossil fuel consumption at the Energy Department. For her efforts, Ruth was inducted into the Wisconsin Conservation Hall of Fame in 2001.

After leaving the Energy Department, Ruth returned to her roots as an educator. She became a member of the Board of Regents for the University of Wisconsin, where she worked from 1983 to 1992.

This Chalkboard Champion passed away March 14, 2005, in Bellevue, Wisconsin, from complications due to Alzheimer’s Disease. She was 82 years old.

NC educator Michelle Pierce teaches computer science courses

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Middle school teacher Michelle Pierce of Charlotte, North Carolina, helps her students gain skills needed for success in the 21st century. Photo credit: Computer Science Teachers Association

Our nation’s students are fortunate to have excellent educator who help them develop skills needed to be successful in the 21st century. One of these is Michelle Pierce, a middle school computer science teacher from Charlotte, North Carolina.

Michelle teaches at Mallard Creek STEM (Science, Engineering, Engineering, ad Mathematics) Academy in Charlotte, where she was recently selected as their 2022-2023 Middle School Teacher of the Year. She also teaches Digital Citizenship lessons to every K-8 student in the school. And she leads an after school Girls Who Code Club to help close the gender gap in technology. As if all that were not enough, she also serves as a Team Lead and Teacher Mentor.

Michelle is passionate about using her voice to advocate for diversity and equity in Computer Science. In the classroom, she works to present Computer Science in relatable, yet fun ways while at the same time using course materials that help diversity students see themselves represented. In April, 2023, Michelle hosted a school-wide Hackathon event where over 100 families participated in hands-on activities to learn more about different areas of the computer science field.

In 2021, Michelle was one of ten educators recognized as an Amazon Future Engineer Teacher of the Year for her work in helping students in underserved and under-represented communities explore possibilities of studying computer science. As a result of that recognition, she was selected to represent the Amazon Future Engineer program at the 2022 CSTA National Conference.

Michelle earned her Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned a second Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and Teaching from North Carolina Central University in 2005. In addition, shas completed the requirements to be certified as a Common Sense Educator and Google Certified Educator, Level 2. She is an active member of the North Carolina CSTA chapter, CSTA Black Affinity Group, and ISTE. She is also a founding member of the Charlotte Women in Tech for Good.