Milken Family Foundation Educators
The Milken Family Foundation has presented 120 educators in 44 states with its 2001National Educator Awards. Each winner will receive $25,000 for their unrestricted use and an expenses-paid trip to Los Angeles to participate in the foundation’s annual conference in June.
The foundation is based in Santa Monica, Calif., and was established to advance efforts to improve the quality of life in society. The National Educator Award was created to reward and retain excellent K-12 educators. Recipients are nominated for the award by a panel appointed by each state’s department of education. Winners are notified in surprise assemblies at their schools.
The award winners are listed below by state.
Alabama. Katherine M. Adams, Central High School West Campus, Tuscaloosa; Matt Dean, Buckhorn High School, New Market. Alaska. Rhonda M. Gardner, Chugiak High School, Eagle River; Bruce L. Rife, Soldotna High School, Soldotna. Arizona. Kevin J. Corner, Mountain View High School, Tucson; Abby J. Dupke, Dobson High School, Mesa; Alberto Jesus Urquidez, Flowing Wells High School, Tucson. Arkansas. Connie Gertsch Green, Mabelvale Middle School, Mabelvale; Steven Long, Rogers High School, Rogers; Gary Stark, Helen Tyson Middle School, Springdale. California. Becky Adrian, Mae Hensley Junior High School, Ceres; David Burns, Foothill High School, Sacramento; Joshua Tornek, Blair High School, Pasadena; Diane E. Whalen, Rancho Milpitas Middle School, Milpitas. Colorado. Mary A. Buss, Bookcliff Middle School, Grand Junction; John McKinney, Mt. Ridge Middle School, Highland Park.
Connecticut. Pamela Bellmore Gardner, Guilford High School, Guilford; Mary E. Sersanti, Coginchaug Regional High School, Durham. Florida. Stephanie Soliven, Southwest Middle School, Palm Bay; Mark Tohulka, MAST Academy High School, Miami; Anete Vasquez, Palm Harbor University High School, Palm Harbor; Angie Williams, Riverspring Middle School, Crawfordville. Georgia. Betsy Bunte, Campbell High School, Smyrna; R. Micah Story, East Jackson Middle School, Commerce. Hawaii. Georgia G. Goeas, Konawaena Middle School, Kealakekua; Robin Kitsu, Nanakuli High and Intermediate School, Waianae; Herman S. H. Leong, Radford High School, Honolulu. Illinois. Steven L. Layne, Butler Junior High School, Oak Brook; Stephen A. Severson, Bradley Central Middle School, Bradley. Indiana. Sherry L. Annee, Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School, Indianapolis; Alicia Deanne Harris, South Wayne Junior High School, Indianapolis; Gregory Macklem, Elkhart Memorial High School, Elkhart.
Iowa. Thomas Paulsen, Carroll High School, Carroll; Gail B. Wortmann, Ottumwa High School, Ottumwa. Kansas. Michiel Ford, Holton High School, Holton; Jada Kohlmeier, Mill Valley High School, Shawnee; Amy M. Murphy, Blue Valley North High, Overland Park. Kentucky. Karen E. Branham, Glasgow High School, Glasgow; Sheila A. Duncan, Boyd County High School, Ashland; Kirk B. Lattimore, Crosby Middle School, Louisville. Louisiana. Keith Burton, South Highlands Elementary Magnet School, Shreveport; Vicky A. Condalary, Cedarcrest-Southmoor Elementary School, Baton Rouge; Jessie H. Creech, Warren Easton Fundamental Senior High School, New Orleans; Jacklene Marie Jones, Bank Avenue Elementary School, New Iberia; Beth Miller, Dorseyville Elementary School, White Castle; Emily Langley Stanford, Shreve Island Elementary School, Shreveport. Maine. Pender Kimball, Wescott Junior High School, Westbrook; Naoto Kobayashi, Hall-Dale Elementary School, Farmingdale; Ted Tibbetts, Portland High School, Portland.
Maryland. Camille Basoco, Baltimore School for the Arts, Baltimore; Chuck E. Greiner, James M. Bennett High School, Salisbury; Rachael Younkers, Plum Point Middle School, Huntingtown. Massachusetts. June E. Eressy, University Park Campus School, Worcester; Catherine C. Latham, Lynn English High School, Lynn; Ed Noonan, Dorchester High School, Dorchester. Michigan. Randall J. Cook, Tri County Senior High School, Howard City; Steven Koponen, O. E. Dunckel Middle School, Farmington Hills; Matthew E. Ludwig, Marquette Senior High School, Marquette; Jeffery D. Robinson, Malcolm X Academy, Detroit. Minnesota. S. Charlesworth-Seiler, Fine Arts Interdisciplinary School, Crystal; Sue Nielsen, Kellogg Middle School, Rochester. Mississippi. Renee A. Moore, Broad Street High School, Shelby; Dorothy Stewart, Hancock County Middle School, Kiln. Missouri. Stephen Kimball, Hazelwood East High School, St. Louis; Brian Weaver, Jennings Junior High School, Jennings.
Montana. Jennifer Royall, Sacajawea Middle School, Bozeman; Paul Christian Swenson, Billings West High School, Billings; Wilhemina Wright, Arlee High School, Arlee. Nebraska. Heather Harbison, McMillan Magnet Center, Omaha; Janelle E. Stansberry, Cedar Bluffs High School, Cedar Bluffs. Nevada. Ruth Litterini, Chaparral High School, Las Vegas; Valdine Marie McLean, Pershing County High School, Lovelock. New Hampshire. Mark D. Kaercher, Newport Middle School, Newport; Nancy B. McIver, Linwood Public High School, Lincoln. New Mexico. Dean Cunningham, Newcomb High Schoo, Newcomb; Paula Tafoya Nunez, Cleveland Middle School, Albuquerque. North Carolina. Gene Freeman, L. Gilbert Carroll Middle School, Lumberton; Patricia Legrand, Dudley High School, Greensboro; Cindy Hoffner Moss, Independence High School, Charlotte. North Dakota. Jennifer J. Montgomery, Bismarck High School, Bismarck; Kim Slotsve, Red River High School, Grand Forks.
Ohio. Melody Kay Boyd, Roosevelt Middle School, Springfield; Kimberly Puckett, Tri-Village High School, New Madison. Oklahoma. Paula L. Dyer, Mayfield Middle School, Oklahoma City; Tim Rose, Bridge Creek High School, Blanchard; Gene L. Williams, Emerson Alternative Education Center, Oklahoma City. Oregon. Merle Saunders, Vale High School, Vale; Tom Thompson, Philomath High School, Philomath; Tim Whitley, Winston Churchill School, Eugene. Pennsylvania. Dick Heyler, Harlan Rowe Junior High School, Athens; Michael J. Hoy, Neshaminy High School, Langhorne; Thomas A. Kelchner, Williamsport Area High School, Williamsport; Thomas J. Starmack, South Allegheny High School, McKeesport. Rhode Island. Ulysses S. Gallman III, Narragansett Pier Middle School, Narragansett; Peter J. McLaren, Archie R. Cole Junior High School, East Greenwich. South Carolina. Jay Forrest, Clover High School, Clover; Jeanne F. Stiglbauer, Dreher High School, Columbia; Malinda D. Taylor, Edward L. Wright Middle School, Columbia.
Tennessee. Kana Barker- Mabon, Cypress Junior High School, Memphis; Clifford Davis Jr., Cedar Bluff Middle School, Knoxville. Texas. Jane Borland, Lamar High School, Arlington; Mary Alice Melendez, Socorro High School, El Paso; Raye Lynn White, East Central Heritage Middle School, San Antonio; Pamela Jeanne Wilcox, Klein Oak High School, Spring. Utah. Gerry Gardner Maak, Park City High School, Park City; Glen D. Westbroek, Orem Junior High School, Orem. Virginia. Cynthia Baird, Brentsville District High School, Nokesville; Stephanie E. Bishop, Prince George High School, Prince George; Colin Brown, Washington Lee High School, Arlington; Jennifer K. Presson, Forest Glen Middle School, Suffolk. Washington. Sean McCabe, Liberty Bell High School, Winthrop; Patrick Preisinger, Meridian High School, Bellingham; Betty G. Williams, Truman Middle School, Tacoma.
West Virginia. Kenna Barger, Randolph County Vocational/Technical Center, Elkins; Samuel R. Moore, Cammack Middle School, Huntington. Wisconsin. Robert Hetzel, O’Keefe Middle School, Madison; Christine Pace, East Junior High School, Wisconsin Rapids; Jim Schmitt, North High School, Eau Claire. Wyoming. John P. Forsyth, Lander Valley High School, Lander; Maureen Ryff, Wheatland High School, Wheatland.
Parent Involvement Awards
The Alexandria, Va.-based National Association of Partners in Education and the New York City-based Metropolitan Life Foundation recently honored six programs that promote collaboration between teachers and parents. The six programs are listed below.
The Parent Engagement Center, Fresno Unified School District, Fresno, Calif., for providing multilingual school updates, adult-education classes, and workshops for parents in the district.
The Parent Partnership at Oglethorpe County Primary School, Lexington, Ga., for its parenting workshops that teach parents how to enhance children’s education in partnership with teachers, and for facilitating regular parent/teacher conferences.
The Partnership for an Educational Village, Lynn, Mass., for using the resources of the Robert L. Ford Elementary School, two local colleges, and the community to provide education enrichment programs for children and their families.
The Tellin’ Stories Project, Washington, for involving all members of a school’s staff and students’ families in workshops and professional development classes to improve education.
The Libros y Familias Program, Independence, Ore., for encouraging family literacy by teaching parents to use Spanish children’s literature to improve students’ reading and writing skills.
The Home-School Connection, Groton, Conn., for promoting teamwork between parents and teachers by reaching out to parents and encouraging them to participate in the education process.
Leadership Awards
The Colubmia, Mo.-based University Council for Educational Administration recently announced the recipients of two awards at its 2001 annual convention in Cincinnati.
Barbara Jackson, an education professor at Fordham University in New York City, was awarded the Roald F. Campbell Award for Lifetime Achievement for her commitment to excellence, her leadership, and service. She was presented with a plaque at the convention.
Two winners received the Jack A. Culbertson award, which is given to junior professors for their contributions to educational leadership. The winners were Jay P. Scribner, from the University of Missouri, Columbia, and Linda Skrla, from Texas A&M University in College Station. They each recived a plaque and $100 with the award.
Other Honors and Awards
Robert Chase, the president of the National Education Association, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Center for Policy Alternatives at an awards dinner in Washington last month. The CPA, a public policy development group based in Washington, presented the award in recognition of Mr. Chase’s dedication to progressive education reform and for his work at the NEA, a Washington-based teacher advocacy organization.
The Westerville, Ohio-based National Middle School Association recently honored Nancy Doda, a college of education professor at National-Louis University, with the association’s John Lounsbury Award for distinguished and lifetime service to middle school education. Ms. Doda was honored for her work as a professor at the Chicago-based university, as a consultant to middle schools across the country, and for her research on middle school education.
Valdine McLean, a science teacher at Pershing County High School, Lovelock, Nev., received the first Award for Teaching Excellence from the Washington-based National Education Association Foundation last month. Among other achievements, she was one of the first teachers in Nevada to earn National Board Certification, and was the first teacher in her school to integrate technology into her teaching. She received the award and $25,000 at the NEA Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education Gala in Washington last month.
The award recognizes excellent instructional practice, advocacy for the profession of teaching, community involvement, and attention to diversity. Award candidates are nominated by their colleagues.
