A Bay County educator known for a commitment to students that extends beyond the classroom has been honored with an Excellence In Education award from the Michigan Lottery.

The award winner, Ethan Shannon, is a STEM/Robotics teacher at Garber High School. The school is part of Essexville-Hampton 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 Shannon will air this evening.

Shannon says he chose a career in education so he could make an impact on lives.

“I wanted a meaningful career where I could make a difference in peoples’ lives. Teaching has been everything I could have ever hoped for in that regard.”

Shannon says getting his students involved in hands-on activities are his favorite part of being an educator.

“Getting my students involved in something hands-on for the first time is an amazing experience. Seeing the enjoyment on their faces while they are fully engaged and learning something new is incredibly rewarding.”

Shannon was nominated for the award by a former student.

“As an educator, Mr. Shannon has helped prepare students for careers in engineering to medicine, but what makes him exceptional is his commitment to education that extends beyond the classroom. About 10 years ago, Mr. Shannon initiated Essexville’s award-winning robotics program to increase access to STEM extracurricular activities for K-12 students in our community. He has exponentially grown the organization to include multiple elementary, middle, and high school teams as well as a coding club. Mr. Shannon volunteers thousands of hours as a robotics mentor and writes hundreds of grants while also using money from his own retirement account to support the program. In fact, he personally bought nearly every tool in the robotics lab, spending over $50,000 to give his students the equipment they need to be successful. In addition to leading robotics teams, Mr. Shannon is dedicated to protecting and educating students year-round. For example, he redesigned our school district’s Critical Incident Management Booklets to be more accessible in K-12 classrooms in the event of an emergency, advocated for educator training in student drug overdose crises, and started a therapy dog program to improve student mental health in our schools. The impact Mr. Shannon has on the community goes beyond the school district as he actively engages with lawmakers to increase robotics education funding in our state.”

Shannon earned a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Michigan University and a master’s degree from Saginaw Valley State University. He has been an educator for 25 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.