Press Releases    All Press Releases

LAUSD Elementary School Teacher Surprised with $25,000 Milken Educator Award

The 2012 California “Oscar of Teaching” goes to Jackie Bonilla

January 18, 2013

A seemingly routine schoolwide assembly turned into the surprise of a lifetime when the Milken Family Foundation (MFF) honored – and stunned – Jackie Bonilla, a second-grade teacher at Los Angeles School District’s (LAUSD) Clover Avenue Elementary School,  with a Milken Educator Award. One of education’s most prestigious recognitions, the Award, presented by MFF Chairman and Co-Founder Lowell Milken, comes with a no-strings-attached cash prize of $25,000.

Among the leaders on hand to offer congratulations were California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, LAUSD Superintendent Dr. John Deasy and LAUSD Board Member, District 1 Marguerite LaMotte.

Hailed as a “21st-century teacher for a 21st-century learner,” Jackie Bonilla’s second-grade classroom at Clover Avenue Elementary School is a success-based environment in which the fundamentals are taught in a hands-on, interdisciplinary manner.  Consider Bonilla’s role as curator of her classroom’s “cultural museum” where she oversees the research of eight different cultures. Kids create artifacts and learn writing, social studies, technology and oral language skills while learning about their heritage. Beyond the museum, Bonilla employs a trove of tactics to challenge her children, including strategic grouping, thematic projects, game simulations, journaling and Claymation for creative story writing. Her other bona-fides: Bonilla hosts parent workshops, writes a weekly newsletter to keep moms and dads in the loop, and established science family evenings, to name a few.

Bonilla’s talents are reflected in the success of her students.  During the 2011-2012 school year when Bonilla taught third-graders, 87 percent scored proficient or above in English language arts on the California Standards Test (CST) and 97 percent scored proficient or above in math.  Clover Avenue Elementary achieved an Academic Performance Index (API) score of 957 out of 1000, exceeding the statewide goal of 800.  The campus was honored by the U.S. Department of Education as a 2012 National Blue Ribbon School. 

A model leader in and outside the classroom, Bonilla is grade-level chair and Gifted And Talented Education (GATE)/Schools for Advanced Studies coordinator.  She has increased the numbers of underrepresented student populations in GATE.  She serves on the School Site Council and is a key member of the Blue Ribbon Nomination Application Writing Committee.  Bonilla holds workshops for teachers, mentors beginning teachers, and successfully authors grants that send students on field trips or bring new resources to campus.

The recognition is not intended as a lifetime achievement award. Recipients are selected in early to mid-career for what they have achieved — and for the promise of what they will accomplish in the future. Milken Educators point to their Award as a pivotal milestone. Encompassed in the recognition is the responsibility to stretch their professional practices and leadership to even higher levels.

Hailed by Teacher Magazine as the “Oscars of Teaching,” what separates this Award from others is that the recipients have no idea that they will be honored. Not only is the entire selection process confidential, but so is the real purpose of the schoolwide assemblies where the Awards are presented. The Awards story doesn’t end with the surprise notification. New recipients are invited to join the Milken Educator Network, a group of distinguished educators whose expertise serves as a valuable resource to fellow educators, legislators, school boards and others shaping the future of education.

MFF has been recognizing and rewarding the noble profession of teaching through the Milken Educator Awards for 26 years. Since first presented to a dozen California teachers, the Awards have grown to become the nation’s preeminent teacher recognition program having honored more than 2,500 K-12 teachers, principals and specialists with over $63 million in individual, unrestricted $25,000 awards.  More than $135 million in funding has been devoted to the overall program, which includes powerful professional development opportunities throughout the recipients’ careers in education.  The exponential impact of Milken Educators is helping to improve American K-12 education.

The Awards alternates yearly between elementary and secondary educators. Each participating state department of education appoints an independent blue ribbon committee to review candidates that are sourced through a confidential selection process and recommend candidates to the Foundation.

Award Criteria:

Candidates for the Milken Educator Awards are selected on the basis of all the following criteria:

• Exceptional educational talent as evidenced by effective instructional practices and student learning results in the classroom and school;
• Exemplary educational accomplishments beyond the classroom that provide models of excellence for the profession;
• Individuals whose contributions to education are largely unheralded yet worthy of the spotlight;
• Early- to mid-career educators who offer strong long-range potential for professional and policy leadership; and
• Engaging and inspiring presence that motivates and impacts students, colleagues and the community.

View the 2012–13 Milken Educator Awards YouTube video for a peek at the surprise of a lifetime that awaits up to 40 of America’s best educators.

For more information about the Milken Educator Awards, visit http://www.milkeneducatorawards.org or call the Foundation at (310) 570-4775.  You can connect with the Foundation at www.twitter.com/milken, www.facebook.com/milkeneducatorawards and at www.youtube.com/milkenaward.

###

---