HONOLULU (AP) — Two Hawaii teachers have been honored with a prestigious national award that comes with a $25,000 prize.
HONOLULU (AP) — Two Hawaii teachers have been honored with a prestigious national award that comes with a $25,000 prize.
The Milken Educator Award is part of a program that has been called the “Oscars of Teaching,” KHON-TV reported Thursday.
The awards went to third-grade teacher Masaru Uchino of Momilani Elementary School and Kelly Sutcliffe, who teaches fourth grade at President Thomas Jefferson Elementary School.
Gov. David Ige joined Milken Family Foundation Chairman and Co-Founder Lowell Milken in presenting the awards at each school.
Milken praised Uchino for incorporating technology in the classroom, saying the math teacher has prepared his students to become future innovators and visionaries.
Uchino’s “dynamic teaching methods captivate students, parents and colleagues with his creative ways of instruction,” Milken said.
Sutcliffe was recognized for promoting teamwork and leadership among her students.
“Kelly Sutcliffe motivates her students to ‘be the best you can be!’ and achieve increasingly higher results,” Milken said. “This performance-driven mindset imbues a sense of purpose and preparation for the challenges of the future.”
The two Hawaii teachers are among 35 educators in the U.S. receiving the award for the 2016-17 school year.
The Milken Educator Awards is the oldest teacher recognition program of its kind in the nation. Now in its 30th year, the program has awarded more than 2,700 educators, totaling about $68 million.