Leaders of the Idaho STEM Action Center will honor two Idaho teachers for championing the subjects of science, technology, engineering and math.
Payette teacher Paula McElroy and Caldwell teacher Jason George were named winners of the INDEEDS Awards, the Industry’s Excellent Educators Dedicated to STEM awards.
The award was created in 2000 by former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne and is awarded to teachers who forge alliances between students, Idaho businesses and STEM education advocates.
“Paula and Jason make huge impacts on students — and colleagues — every day,” said Angela Hemingway, the executive director of the STEM Action Center. “They not only push themselves to grow as professionals, but help ensure their fellow teachers reach their full potential, too, with both having worked extensively mentoring and training numerous educators over the years.”
McElroy, has taught fifth grade at Westside Elementary School in Payette for 24 years. She was one of the first teachers in Idaho to earn a Technology Integration Specialist certificate. She has helped teachers in Payette and Weiser pass the technology requirement for credential recertification. She has secured school-improvement and afterschool program grants to get technology into the hands of students and she created the Payette School District’s first robotics team.
George, a high school science teacher at Vision Charter School in Caldwell, believes quality STEM education comes from aggregate experience. George served on the committee responsible for revising Idaho’s science education standards and earned the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching last year.
McElroy and George will receive their INDEEDS awards during the Oct. 24 Idaho Technology Council Hall of Fame gala in Boise. Both teachers will receive a check for $2,000, and funding to attend any STEM-related national conference, plus their schools will receive $2,000 each to fund STEM initiatives.
More reading:
Click here to read Idaho Education News’ profile of George.
