 Four Teachers Named Finalists for Alaska Teacher of the Year
This week the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development announced four teachers as finalists for the 2023 Teacher of the Year: Heather Baker (Kenai Peninsula Borough School District), Harlee Harvey (North Slope Borough School District), Mark Martin (Denali Borough School District), and Charles Lance Smith (Anchorage School District).
The finalists went through four rounds of evaluation by committee which included interviews, personal essays, sample lessons, and letters of recommendation.
The Alaska Teacher of the Year and an alternate will be announced at the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year. The selected teacher will serve as Alaska’s nominee for the National Teacher of the Year and will be able to participate in programs and activities with other State Teachers of the Year coordinated by the Council of Chief State School Officers.
“Alaska’s Teacher of the Year finalists have been recognized by their peers as deserving of special recognition,” Commissioner Dr. Michael Johnson said. “We join them in celebrating the dedication of these four educators and also as an opportunity to thank all Alaskan teachers for their hard work.”
Heather Baker teachers a multiage 4th/5th grade class at K-Beach Elementary School in Soldotna, where she has taught since 2019. She has also taught at Nikiski North Star Elementary and worked as a Migrant Ed STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) teacher and tutor. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Washington and a Master of Arts (MA) in Education with Elementary focus from the University of Southern California.
Harlee Harvey has been an elementary teacher at Tikiġac School in Point Hope since 2014. Harvey earned a Master’s in Bilingual/English as a Second Language (ESL) Education from the American College of Education, where she also earned an Education Specialist in Leadership degree.
Mark Martin has taught for 17 years at Tri-Valley School in Healy. For most of that time, he has taught middle school science, engineering, and math. He earned a Bachelor of Science in BioResource Research at Oregon State University and a MA in Teaching from the University of Alaska Southeast.
Charles Lance Smith teaches in the Anchorage School District at Rogers Park Elementary, working with high gifted and twice-exceptional students. He has held roles in special education, instructional technology, and Montessori teaching within the Anchorage School District. Smith earned his Bachelor of Arts in Education K-8 from the University of Alaska Anchorage, and also received a Montessori Elementary Diploma Certification from the North American Montessori Center.
Two Alaskan Students Named Presidential Scholars
Thursday U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona announced the 58th class of U.S. Presidential Scholars, recognizing 161 high school seniors for their accomplishments in academics, the arts, and career and technical education fields.
Included in the class are Ian Lee, a homeschool student in Fairbanks, and Bonnie Grace Marriott, a student at West Valley High School in Fairbanks.
Of the 3.7 million students expected to graduate from high school this year, more than 5,000 candidates qualified for the 2022 awards determined by outstanding performance on the College Board SAT or ACT exams or through nominations made by chief state school officers, other partner recognition organizations and YoungArts, the National Foundation for the Advancement of Artists.
Created in 1964, the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program has honored over 7,900 of the nation’s top-performing students. The program was expanded in 1979 to recognize students who demonstrate exceptional talent in the visual, literary and performing arts. In 2015, the program was again extended to recognize students who demonstrate ability and accomplishment in career and technical education fields.
The Presidential Scholars Class of 2022 will be recognized for their outstanding achievement this summer with an online recognition program.
A complete list of 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars is available at http://www.ed.gov/psp.
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FDA Food Science Professional Development Program Accepting Applicants
The free program includes a $500 honorarium, a $500 STEM stipend for classroom experiments, and 4 CEUs.
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The FDA has a Professional Development Program in Food Safety and Nutrition that can be of great benefit to you and your students. The training (held virtually) is based on the Science and our Food Supply curriculum that was developed under a partnership between the FDA and the National Science Teaching Association (NSTA).
This program provides 40 hours (4 CEUs) of combined online training (via Microsoft Teams) and assignments. Teachers accepted into the program receive an advance shipment of lab supplies that includes the full curriculum and such items as safety glasses, test tubes, parafilm, petri dishes (both empty as well as overnight shipments of prepared medium), and headphones, to ensure that all participants can perform the labs in their homes or schools at the same time as the course instructor.
Highlights of the program include presentations by FDA and USDA Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), and lab instruction conducted by an international food safety instructor. Participants will conclude the program by participating in a small-group project. Individual viewing/writing assignments are designed to be used by teachers in their own classroom instruction.
Teachers complete the program with the expectation that they will teach portions of the curriculum in their classrooms, and hold a “train-the-trainer” in-service workshop for local district teachers (curriculum is sent to the teacher in advance for distribution to his/her participants). It is vital that the participants’ principals be supportive of this program.
Teachers are each provided with a $500 STEM stipend to purchase needed materials to perform the experiments in their classrooms and in their peer workshop. Upon completion of the in-service workshop, participants’ pre- and post-assessments, a final report, and submission of receipts, teachers will receive a final $500 honorarium from FDA.
To view the curriculum, please visit: www.fda.gov/teachsciencewithfood
Program information and online application are available at: www.teachfoodscience.org
Applications are due by May 27, 2022; notification will be made via email on or before June 6, 2022.
DEED Accepting Applications for Evidence-Based Comprehensive Afterschool Programs through American Rescue Plan Act Grants
The Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) is seeking applicants for a competitive grant for evidence-based, comprehensive after school programs. This grant is open to both school districts and community-based organizations. Grants will range from $250,000 to $750,00 and will be distributed over two years.
This request for applications will ask potential grantees to provide evidence-based programming that intentionally supports at least one of the following areas:
- Support all students to read at grade level by the end of third grade
- Increase career, technical, and culturally relevant education to meet student and workforce needs
- Close the achievement gap by ensuring equitable educational rigor and resources
- Improve the safety and well-being of students through school partnerships with families, communities, and tribes
The purpose of this competitive grant is to provide school districts and community-based organizations the opportunity to establish innovative strategies to carry out activities that will address unfinished learning and provide enrichment activities through afterschool programs.
Applications are due no later than May 31, 2022 at 5 p.m. The application is available at https://education.alaska.gov/forms. Questions about the competitive grant can be directed to: DEED.CARES@alaska.gov.
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