Michigan Lottery Connect

Lottery Commissioner, Suzanna Shkreli (left), presenting Chad Donahue (right) with his Excellence in Education check

A Gladwin County educator known for keeping his students engaged and respecting his students has been honored with an Excellence In Education award from the Michigan Lottery.

The award winner, Chad Donahue, is a science teacher at Gladwin High School. The school is part of Gladwin Community Schools.

The Michigan Lottery established the Excellence In Education awards in 2014 to recognize outstanding public-school educators across the state during the school year.

Winners of the weekly award receive a $2,000 cash prize. At the end of the school year, one of the weekly award winners will be selected to receive the Lottery’s Educator of the Year award and will receive a $10,000 cash prize.

Each winner also is featured in a news segment on the Lottery’s media partner stations: WXYZ-TV in Detroit, FOX 17 in Grand Rapids, FOX 47 in Lansing, WNEM-TV in Saginaw, and WWTV-TV in Traverse City. The news segment featuring Donahue will air this evening.

“Finding ways to engage students today can be challenging with the many other things going on in their lives,” said Lottery Commissioner, Suzanna Shkreli. “Chad Donahue is a successful educator because he values the importance of teaching a science curriculum that students can relate to and apply to their lives. His efforts have resonated with students, and I am humbled to recognize his work with an Excellence in Education award.”

Donahue says it’s important to give his students real-world applications for science.

“I try to give students real world applications for science. We don’t just learn mitosis; we learn about cancer.  We don’t just learn about genetics; we learn about our families and pets. We do real science and real activities so students can take pride in their work and have tools to help them in life whether they go into a scientific field or not. No one asks: ‘When will we ever use this?’ because they experience what we are learning impacting their day-to-day lives.”

Donahue was nominated for the award by a student.

“Mr. Donahue is the epitome of an engaging teacher. He teaches his botany students how to take care of plants by having them run a greenhouse and then selling their plants to the community in the spring. Zoology gets into the local rivers looking for crayfish. He teaches students how to collect sap and make maple syrup before culminating with a pancake breakfast. Mr. Donahue is one of the very few high school teachers that I have never heard complaints about. He treats every student with the utmost respect both in and out of school. In my many years as a student, parent, and educator, I have seen very few teachers that measure up to Chad Donahue.”

Donahue earned a bachelor’s degree from Central Michigan University and a master’s degree from Marygrove College. He has worked in education for 24 years, all in his current position.

Excellence in Education award nominees are evaluated on the following criteria:

• Excellence – Their work consistently helps students and/or their schools or school districts advance to higher levels of academic achievement.
• Dedication – They consistently go above and beyond expectations to help students succeed.
• Inspiration – Their work inspires others around them to exceed expectations either academically or professionally.
• Leadership – They demonstrate clear leadership skills in their positions with their school or school districts.
• Effectiveness – The nominee’s work has clear and positive results on the educational advancement of students within the school or school district.