Category Archives: Education

NE elem teacher Ivette Kinney earns 2024 Agriculture in the Classroom award

Posted on by

Ivette Kinney, an elementary school teacher from Omaha, Nebraska, has earned a 2024 Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher of the Year Award from the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation. Photo Credit: Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation

Many educators all over the country are featuring farm to table curriculum in their classrooms. One of these is Ivette Kinney, an elementary school teacher from Nebraska. In fact, she has done such a great job with her curriculum that she has earned a 2024 Agriculture in the Classroom Teacher of the Year Award from the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation.

Ivette teaches second grade at Mari Sandoz Elementary School in Omaha. In her classroom, she incorporates agriculture in her lesson-planning through a program called Classroom Visits sponsored by the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation. Ivette signed up for classroom visits, and later she recruited her entire second-grade team to participate. Now, every second-grade student on her campus participates in a Classroom Visit during the course of the year.

Included with Ivette’s Teacher of the Year honors is a $250 Amazon gift card, an agriculture book bundle, and an expense-paid trip to the National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference. The conference, which will be held June 24-27, 2024, in Salt Lake City, Utah, brings educators together from all over the country to learn how to use agricultural concepts to effectively teach core subjects such as reading, math, science, and social studies. The conference features recognition for Teacher of the Year honorees, educational workshops, traveling workshops to agri-businesses and research facilities, and farm tours.

The mission of the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation, a nonprofit organization, is to engage young people, educators, and the general public to promote an understanding of the vital importance of agriculture in the lives of all Nebraskans. For more information about the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation, visit www.nefbfoundation.org. And here is a two-minute You Tube video about Ivette.

Celebrating the work of Virginia football coach Bill Yoast

Posted on by

Outstanding football coach Bill Yoast left an indelible mark on high school football in Alexandria, Virginia. Photo Credit: Alexandria Times

There are many outstanding athletic coaches who work with young people in our schools that are deserving of recognition. Today, I share the story of one of them: Bill Yoast, a football coach who left an indelible mark on high school football in Alexandria, Virginia.

Bill was born in Florence, Alabama, in 1924. He grew up with an absentee father, and picked cotton to help support his family. During WWII, he was drafted into the Army Air Corps, which was the precursor to the US Air Force, in 1943, where he served for three years.

Bill earned his Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from Mercer University, and his Master’s and Education Specialist degrees from Peabody College in Tennessee. He inaugurated his career as a teacher and football coach in Sparta, Georgia. He left that position after the head of the school board reprimanded him for letting an African American baseball team use the shower facilities in a local high school.

In 1960, Bill moved to Alexandria, Virginia, where he accepted a position as the Head Football Coach at Francis C. Hammond High School. In 1969, he led his team to a win at the Virginia AAA Regional Championships.

Once the schools were integrated in 1971, Bill switched schools to TC Williams High, and he also switched roles to become the Defensive Coach and an Assistant Coach, while Herman Boone, who is African American, became the Head Football Coach. That season, under the leadership of the two coaches, the Hammond High team went on to win the Virginia state football championship, finishing the year with an undefeated record. In 2000, the relationship between Bill Yoast and Herman Boone was depicted in the movie Remember the Titans. Bill was portrayed by Will Patton and Herman was portrayed by Denzel Washington.

By the time Bill retired from in teaching in 1990, he had spent three decades as a football coach. During his lengthy career, he also taught physical education and driver’s education, and he coached track and field and golf teams.

Bill Yoast passed away on May 23, 2019, at an assisted living facility in Springfield, Virginia. He was 94 years old.

NYC STEM teacher Laginne Walker garnered 2024 Sloan Award

Posted on by

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

Posted on by

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

Posted on by

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.