Acting Lottery Commissioner, Joe Froehlich, presents Jennifer Miller with her Excellence in Education check.
A Livingston County educator who is known as a passionate, innovative, and dedicated educator has been honored with an Excellence In Education award from the Michigan Lottery.
The award winner, Jennifer Miller, is a K-5 Academic Interventionist at Fowlerville Elementary School. The school is part of the Fowlerville 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, WLUC in Marquette, WNEM-TV in Saginaw, and WWTV-TV in Traverse City. The news segment featuring Miller will air this evening.
Miller said her desire to have an impact on her community attracted her to a career in education.
“I knew that I wanted to work with people in a way that allows me to contribute to the community. I am a life-long learner and the idea of encouraging students to engage in the world around them and find what sparks their interest led me to a career in education. The more years I taught, the more research I studied and classes I took to really learn about best practices in teaching reading. There is nothing like helping a student to unlock the world around them by teaching them to read. It opens doors for a full life of their choosing.”
Miller was nominated for the award by a colleague.
“Jennifer is a passionate, innovative, and dedicated educator whose impact on students, colleagues, and the broader school community exemplifies the highest standards of teaching excellence. Jennifer has continually demonstrated her commitment to student success through both academic achievement and personal growth for over a decade in our district. Jennifer first started at our district as a kindergarten teacher. I not only had the pleasure of working with Jennifer as a colleague, but she was also my child’s teacher. She created the ultimate learning environment for all students who entered her classroom. Her genuine love for teaching and the students was exhibited every day. The foundations and love for learning she instilled with our youngest learners is still talked about amongst our community. Her classroom was always held in the highest regard and everyone wanted to have Mrs. Miller as a teacher.
For the past two years Jennifer has served as an academic interventionist. She has had to overcome health challenges over the past few years and continues to come to school and be a bright light for staff and students despite her own personal challenges. Her ability to connect with staff and students in this new role is superior. She is not just a great teacher—she is a transformative force in education.”
Miller earned a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from Ohio State University. She has been an educator for 20 years, the last two in her 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.
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