The award winner, John Klak, is a high school English and theatre teacher at Mt. Pleasant High School. The school is part of Mt. Pleasant Public 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 Klak will air this evening.
Klak says coming from a family of educators led him to a career in education.
“I come from a family of educators, so education was always a career option that was in front of me. Teaching theater allows me to do everything that I love: teaching, directing, designing, building, acting, and storytelling.”
Klak says his students are what drives him to continue teaching and keeps him going.
“The kids keep me coming to school every day. When I can foster a talent and create a home for a young person, I know that I am able to have a positive impact on them that will last a lifetime.”
Klak was nominated for the award by a friend.
“John Klak has gone above and beyond for his students and the high school. He teaches tenth grade honors English, two theater classes, and directs and produces a fall play and a spring musical. John also runs all sound audio and visuals for events at the school. He spends countless hours after school to prepare for events. Many of his students have gone on to pursue careers in theater, with many in New York and other cities.”
Klak earned a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from Central Michigan University. He has been an educator for 32 years, the last 29 years 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.