High school English teacher Alicia Wein has earned the 2024 Excellence Award. Photo credit: University of Albany Alumni Association

I am always eager to share the story of an exemplary educator who has earned accolades for their work in the classroom. Today, I shine the spotlight on Alicia Wein, a secondary English teacher from Albany, New York. She has earned a 2024 Excellence Award, the Bertha Brimmer Medal, from the University of Albany Alumni Association.

Alicia teaches Guilderland High School in Albany, where she has taught for the past 27 years. At her school, Alicia works to keep at-risk students in the classroom through the campus Focus Program.  She is the co-founder and advisor of the school’s Muslim Student Association, and the co-advisor of the school’s LGBTQ+ Alliance. In addition, she was the advisor of the students who founded the first chapter of the March for Our Lives movement in the Capital District.

In addition, since 2004, Alicia has been a part of her District’s Capital District Writing Project (CDWP), and she has served as CDWP co-director and co-facilitator of the Invitational Summer Institute. And she is also the lead English instructor for the Syracuse University Project Advance (SUPA) program.

Alicia incorporates technology into her instructional program so effectively that her classroom is nearly paperless. Some of the tools she has used are Edmodo, Google Drive, Classroom Calendar, digital assignments and discussion groups, digital drafting, digital paper submission, and digital feedback and evaluation.

For this work, Alicia has earned a reputation as a superlative classroom teacher, an excellent collaborator with community partners, and a dedicated champion for all students. She is highly respected by her peers, who turn to her for advice and instruction in writing as a teacher-leader in her District.

The annual Excellence Awards recognize alumni of the University at Albany for their outstanding achievements and commitment to service. Alicia graduated from the university in 2003. To learn more about the Excellence Award, click on this link to www.alumni.albany.edu/awards.