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Francis Mustapha (IN '93) Receives 2009 Chasing Rainbows Award

Francis Mustapha, a teacher at Snider High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has been selected as the recipient of Dolly Parton's 2009 Chasing Rainbows Award by The National State Teachers of the Year (NSTOY), which annually recognizes a state teacher who has overcome obstacles to become an exemplary teacher. Mustapha, who was born in an impoverished city in Sierra Leone, did not have access to any formal education until he was 10 years old. Eventually his hard work in school paid off and he was accepted to Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana, where he earned a master's and education specialist degree. At the time of his Milken Educator Award, Mustapha was a teacher at South Side High School, also in Fort Wayne.