Announcing the 2013 iEducate Delaware Honorees

We are excited to announce the 2013 iEducate Delaware Honorees! In its second year, iEducate continues to unearth incredible stories of Delawareans who are inspiring young people to learn. The Rodel Foundation is proud to recognize these outstanding individuals who are quietly making a difference both inside the classroom and out, with the hope that others will be inspired to do the same. Of the fifteen finalists, the five Honorees were ultimately selected through a public voting process and guidance from an external advisory committee of educators and community leaders.

The 2013 iEducate Delaware Honorees are:

•  Tara Amsterdam, a teacher a Wilbur Elementary School in the Colonial School District, uses a flipped classroom model and technology, delivering instruction to students when they are both at home and at school. She empowers and meets the diverse needs of all her students through personalized learning.
• Tameca Beckett, a youth services librarian at Laurel Public Library, brings STEM and the library together through a summer reading program that encourages creation, independence, problem solving and critical thinking.
• Samuel Heed, the Senior Historian and Director of Education at the Kalmar Nyckel Foundation, empowers students through experiential learning, helping bring local and national history alive through a curriculum that focuses on history, language arts, and economics.
• Matt Farina, a teacher at Mount Pleasant Elementary School in the Brandywine School District, creates innovative fitness programs in his school and community. He teaches and promotes 21st century skills, along with grit and perseverance that make successful students and citizens.
• Jacqueline Lee, the principal at Gallaher Elementary School in the Christina School District, focuses on a whole-child wellness approach, incorporating physical, mental, emotional supports and a partnership with Nemours to improve student outcomes and increase college and career readiness.

Each Honoree will receive $2,000 to support their work and will be featured throughout the year to represent the embodiment of iEducate Delaware—that everyone has a critical role to play in educating our state’s children.

Honorees and finalists will be recognized at the Vision 2015 conference on public education, held on October 9 at Clayton Hall on the University of Delaware’s Newark campus. To register for the conference, please visit www.SmarterConference.com/Vision2015. We encourage and support educators’ attendance. They are eligible to receive seven clock hours toward renewal of their continuing license, and scholarships are available to educators to cover registration fees for the conference as well as substitute teacher costs, if necessary. Please contact me for more details, emailing me at mkorobkin@rodelfoundationde.org.