Science Award
The Denver-based Education Commission of the States announced the winners of its 2006 awards earlier this summer. Nancy S. Grasmick, Maryland’s state superintendent of schools, received the James Bryant Conant Award, which recognizes an individual’s contributions to American education. Kentucky won the Frank Newman Award for State Innovation, which honors a state or states that have shaped education policy. The ECS Chairman’s Award went to Neil Portnow, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, for his efforts to promote arts in education and his contributions to the organization. The ECS Corporate Award was given to the Public Broadcasting Service, for its commitment to, and investment in, improving public education.
School Media Awards
Thomson Gale, the educational publishing and e-learning division of the Farmington Hills, Minn.-based Thomson Corporation, and the Library Media Connection, a magazine for school media specialists, recently honored three schools for their efforts to raise student achievement through collaborations between teachers and school librarians or technology staff.
The Teachers and Media Specialists Influencing Student Achievement awards, which include $2,500 cash prizes, were awarded to: Andale Elementary School, Andale, Kan.; Bowling Green High School, Bowling Green, Ohio; Helena Middle School, Helena, Mont. The following is a list of schools receiving honorable mentions for that award competition: Campbell Middle School, Daytona Beach, Fla.; Chapman Elementary School, Huntsville, Ala.; Fox Meadows Elementary School, Memphis, Tenn.; Glynn Academy, Brunswick, Ga.; Henrico High School, Richmond, Va.; Navarre High School, Navarre, Fla.; Walter M. Williams High School, Burlington, N.C.
Science Award
Gale G. Streblow, a 7th grade science teacher at Slinger Middle School in Slinger, Wis., has received the 2006 Hilda E. Taylor Teacher Award from the Jason Project. The annual award, named after a teacher who died in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, honors a teacher who creatively and effectively uses the Ashburn, Va.-based organization’s science and math curriculum in the classroom.
Technology Awards
The National School Boards Association, based in Alexandria, Va., recently awarded its Salute District awards to three school districts that focus on technology as a means of improving student achievement. The winners are: Kokomo-Center Township Consolidated School Corporation, Kokomo, Ind.; Kyrene School District, Tempe, Ariz.; Loudon County Public Schools, Ashburn, Va.
In addition, previous Salute District winner, Calcasieu Parish Public School System in Lake Charles, La., received a Trailblazer award from the organization for the technology planning that allowed the district to serve students, staff, and the community during Hurricane Rita.
