OHIO — Two Ohio teachers are receiving national recognition and an award from President Joe Biden. It’s called the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST).
New Albany Primary School Mathematics teacher Krystina Pratt and Fairfax Elementary School Science teacher Stephanie Nowak are those teachers.
Nowak has been a Mentor Public Schools teacher since 1993.
Mrs. Nowak teaches 4th grade at Fairfax Elementary School. She earned the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). It’s the highest award K-12 teachers can receive from the U.S. government. @mentorschools @SpectrumNews1OH pic.twitter.com/VuAjeVuxgP
— Micaela Marshall (@MMarshallTV) February 15, 2022
“A focus of mine is connectedness, and so I still have kids come back year after year after year, even parents (saying) ‘I remember when you taught them this,’ because they see something out or there’s something science-based in the environment that makes them think of me,” said Nowak.
Currently, she teaches fourth grade.
Science is one of her favorite subjects, especially when she can make the lesson interactive.
“Because you have to be able to work through a problem without quitting. So, teaching perseverance, teaching those things and I think science does that,” she said.
PAEMST is the highest award K-12 teachers can receive from the U.S. government. It was established in 1983. This year, President Joe Biden named 117 teachers, mentors and mentoring organizations as recipients of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching and Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring.
“These awards honor the dedication, hard work and important role that America’s teachers and mentors play in supporting learners who will be future STEM professionals, including climate scientists, mathematicians, innovators, space explorers and engineers,” read a press release from the White House.
This honor is one Nowak’s worked hard for.
“This is what I love to do and this is how I do it, and I hope people can take away something from that and do it, too,” she said.
Nowak first applied for the award in 2014 and became a state finalist, but did not win on the national level. So, she applied again, but the results were the same.
This time, she wasn’t sure she wanted to apply. But now, she’s glad she went for it.
“The lesson I taught them is like, ‘guys, you might think this came easy, but this is like eight years later and it was changing and shaping myself as an educator,’” she said, while referencing her students.
Recipients receive a monetary award and a certificate signed by the president.
“It’s just about having a passion to do something and wanting to share it more so than it is ‘oh look, you know, I won this big award,'” said Nowak.
This teacher hopes her experience leaves a lasting impression on her students about the importance of never giving up.
“Hopefully for them, they learn that it’s not always the first time. Sometimes you have to keep trying to achieve a goal,” she said.
She will recieve the award officially during a virtual ceremony on Feb. 24.
