The Michigan Lottery is encouraging parents, students, school staff members, and others to nominate outstanding public school educators for the 2016-17 Excellence in Education awards.
All public school employees may be nominated for the awards, which recognize educators who go “above and beyond” to make a difference in the lives of children. To nominate an outstanding public school educator, go to http://bit.ly/ExcellenceInEducation.
One outstanding educator will be selected each week and will receive a $500 cash prize as well as a $500 grant to their classroom, school or school district. One annual winner will be selected from the weekly winners and will receive a $10,000 cash prize.
The Lottery has teamed up with Michigan State University basketball coach Tom Izzo, who will present each winner with their award. In addition to the $500 cash prize and $500 grant, each winner also will receive a plaque and be featured in a news segment on the Lottery’s media partner stations: WXYZ-TV in Detroit, FOX 17 in Grand Rapids and FOX 47 in Lansing.
The winner of the Educator of the Year award for the 2015-16 school year was Daniel Carr, who teaches Spanish and sports marketing at Waverly High School in Lansing. The school is part of the Waverly Community Schools district.
Izzo presented Carr with a $10,000 check during a surprise visit to an honors assembly June 1 at Waverly High School.
More than 500 educators from across the state were nominated during the second year of the educational awards program and 34, including Carr, were selected to win a weekly award.
The winner of the 2015 Educator of the Year award was Michael Craig, a special education teacher at the Charles Drew Transition Center. The school is part of the Detroit Public Schools district and serves about 600 young adults with special needs.
Excellence in Education award nominees are evaluated on:
- 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.
