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Milwaukee Public Schools Teacher wins $25,000 Milken Educator Award
Sarah Berndt from Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School presented with Wisconsin’s 2013 “Oscar of Teaching”
October 02, 2013
Sarah Berndt, a Spanish and International Baccalaureate (IB) Technology teacher at Milwaukee Public Schools’ Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School, was surprised with an unrestricted $25,000 Milken Educator Award at a school-wide assembly. This prestigious honor will be bestowed in 2013 upon up to 40 of America’s most outstanding secondary school educators.
Dr. Tony Evers,State Superintendent of Public Instruction joined Dr. Jane Foley, senior vice president, Milken Educator Awards to present the Award, the only one given in Wisconsin this year. Sharing their congratulations were Milwaukee Board of School Directors Vice President Meagan Holman and Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent Gregory Thornton.
“Our public education system is at the heart of America’s promise and essential to safeguarding the American dream for future generations,” said Lowell Milken, chairman and co-founder of the Milken Family Foundation. “With research confirming that effective teachers represent the single most important school-related factor in raising student achievement, it is important to honor them, learn from them, and inspire more capable people to enter the profession. As the program’s motto extols, the future belongs to the educated.”
About the Award Recipient
To most people, Shark Tank might just be a popular reality TV show on ABC, but to Spanish and International Baccalaureate (IB) Technology teacher Sarah Berndt, it’s a teaching opportunity. Berndt has taken the show’s concept and transformed it into a spirited class lesson for her 9th-grade students at Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School in Milwaukee, WI. Students learn the technology design cycle (Investigate, Design, Plan, Create, and Evaluate) by jumping into a metaphorical shark tank where they present their product ideas to a panel of independent judges.
Berndt differentiates her instruction to reach all learners among Reagan’s diverse urban freshman class, and also leads professional development for staff in best practices for teaching technology. In her dual role as a foreign language teacher, Berndt’s students exit her Spanish I class capable of writing 100-125 word essays; the majority achieve a rating of proficient or advanced, with many receiving college credit. Combining her passions for technology and Spanish, Berndt developed the curriculum for Reagan’s first online Spanish course aligned with IB standards.
As editor-in-chief of Reagan’s online school newspaper, Berndt requires interested students to fill out official job applications for staff positions, with more than 50 students applying the first year. And since the high school offers more than 70 extra-curricular options, Berndt created a central database to provide students, staff, parents and the community with the information they need to get involved. In the greater community, Berndt also works with the League of United Latin American Citizens to strengthen youth leadership and has been recognized by the Metropolitan Milwaukee Alliance of Black School Educators for her impact on bringing cultures together.
Details
The Milken Educator Awards, conceived by Lowell Milken to attract, retain and motivate outstanding talent to the teaching profession, is the nation’s preeminent teacher recognition program, dubbed the “Oscars of Teaching” by Teacher Magazine. Since 1987, the Milken Family Foundation, co-founded by Michael and Lowell Milken, has devoted more than $136 million in funding to the Milken Educator Awards, including over $64 million in individual Awards to nearly 2,600 recipients plus powerful professional development opportunities and networking with leading education stakeholders.
Wisconsin Milken Educators
Wisconsin joined the Milken Educator Awards program in 1999.
29 Wisconsin Milken Educator Award recipients
$725,000 cash awards presented to Wisconsin Milken Educator Award recipients
More:
Milken Educator Awards Website: www.MilkenEducatorAwards.org
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction Website:www.dpi.wi.gov/
Milwaukee Public Schools Website: www.milwaukee.k12.wi,us/
Milken Family Foundation Website: www.mff.org
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For more information, visit our Media Kit page.
Education reform leader Lowell Milken created the Milken Educator Awards to recognize exemplary teachers and established the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) to generate more talented teachers, www.niet.org. NIET operates TAP: The System for Teacher and Student Advancement and the Best Practices Center. Lowell Milken recently provided the founding gift for the UCLA School of Law’s Lowell Milken Institute for Business Law and Policy. For more information about Lowell visit www.lowellmilken.com.