Indiana Wesleyan University alumna Natalie Schneider went to Washington, D.C. late last month to receive the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching (PAEMST) in a three-day event that included personal congratulations from Vice President Joe Biden.
President Obama
announced on June 11 that Schneider and 96 other teachers from across the United States would receive the nation's highest award for math and science education:
"America's success in the 21st century depends on our ability to educate our children, give our workers the skills they need, and embrace technological change. That starts with the men and women in front of our classrooms. These teachers are the best of the best, and they stand as excellent examples of the kind of leadership we need in order to train the next generation of innovators and help this country get ahead," said President Obama.
Schneider teaches math at Belzer Middle School in Indianapolis. According to the
website of the PAEMST Recognition Program, Schneider developed an innovative program for kids in her school who had failed the Indiana assessment tests:
Designed to support the needs of struggling learners, this program resulted in 60 percent of Natalie's students passing the statewide assessment, with all showing significant growth after just 1 year of the program's implementation.
Schneider acknowledged the award in her own statement on the PAEMST site: "This award represents recognition of the dedication and commitment that I have always felt twards bringing mathematics into the lives of children in a meaningful and enduring way."
Schneider graduated from IWU in 2008 with a Master of Education and graduated from the IWU Principal Licensure Program in 2010.
(Pictured: Schneider with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and Deputy Director of the National Science Foundation Cora Marrett. Photo credit: White House)