Middle school mathematics teacher Hussein Fassa has garnered a coveted 2025 Big Apple Award from New York City Public Schools. Photo credit: New York City Public Schools

There are many exemplary educators teaching in our nation’s public schools who are deserving of recognition. One of these is Hossein Fassa, a middle school mathematics teacher. He has garnered a coveted 2025 Big Apple Award from New York City Public Schools.

Hussein teaches at the New School for Leadership and the Arts in the Bronx. He has taught at this school for the past 7 years. The facility offers intensive arts and science programs, where students are provided with a global and technological-driven experiences. Previously he taught at Melrose School, also located in the Bronx, for five years.

This innovative teacher designs lessons that are structured so that students explore and interact with other students to advance their learning. He strives to create a classroom environment where students feel safe to take intellectual risks and are held accountable to each other.

His Big Apple Award is not the only honors Hussein has earned. In 2024 he was named a recipient of the Edith May Sliffe Award by the Mathematical Association of America. These awards are given annually to middle and high school mathematics teachers who have done outstanding work to motivate students in mathematics by participating in one of the MAA American Mathematics Competitions. In addition, Hussein is a former NYC Teaching Fellow and a Fellow for the Math for America program, a fellowship program for mathematics and science teachers in New York City. The program offers a four-year fellowship with a $60,000 stipend and the opportunity for professional development.

Hussein earned his Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Imperial College in London in 1987. He earned his Master’s degree in Education from St. John’s University in New York in 2015.