Press Releases    All Press Releases

D.C. Public Charter School Teacher Kena Allison Surprised with $25,000 Milken Educator Award

Thurgood Marshall Academy Physics Teacher and Instructional Specialist Honored with “Oscar of Teaching”

October 24, 2013

Washington, DC (October 24, 2013) — During a schoolwide assembly to commend Thurgood Marshall Academy’s distinction as a top performing “Reward School,” Kena Allison, a physics teacher and instructional specialist, was astonished to learn that she had received a completely unexpected individual reward as a top educator. In front of 400 cheering students, colleagues and dignitaries, Milken Family Foundation Co-Founder Mike Milken and acting DC State Superintendent of Education Jesús Aguirre presented Allison with a Milken Educator Award.

Lending their congratulations were DC Mayor of Education Abigail Smith who presented a proclamation from the Mayor; D.C. Public Charter School Board Member Don Soifer; Council of the District of Columbia, Councilman At-Large David A. Catania; and DC State Board of Education Representatives Mary Lord, At-Large, Mark Jones, Ward 5, Monica Warren-Jones, Ward 6, and Karen Williams, Ward 7.

In a moment’s time, this outstanding educator experienced the fanfare typically reserved for all-star athletes and award-winning entertainers.

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. This recognition is not 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. Encompassed in the recognition is the responsibility for those honored to stretch their professional practices and leadership to even higher levels.

About the Award Recipient

“Irreplaceable.” That’s how Kena Allison is described by a colleague. Allison’s pursuit to help others actually started with medical school. Luckily for her students, she realized she wanted to help shape the future by becoming a teacher instead, carrying her love of science over into the classroom where she shares it with her students.

Always the consummate innovator, Allison encourages her 12^th-grade students to learn Albert Einstein’s subject of choice, physics, in creative ways. Inside the classroom, students originate physics raps to learn equations or play Red Light, Green Light to demonstrate Newton’s Laws of Motion. Outside the classroom, she plans field trips for students to study the aerodynamics of roller coasters and also created a “Physics of Sports” project, where students pick their favorite sports like golf or gymnastics and relate back to her how the laws of physics apply to their respective sports.

Academy students enter the public charter school in the 9^th grade, many of them three to four years behind, so Allison developed a system to get freshmen on the right track from the start. By the time they reach her senior physics class, these teens are prepped for her introduction to the rigors of college. One hundred percent of Academy students are accepted to college.

In addition to being an exceptional classroom teacher, Allison is science department chair, collaborating with colleagues to study Next Generation Science Standards and leading professional development. For her tireless efforts, she received a Harvard Fellowship for Enhancing Teacher Effectiveness in High Schools.

Kena Allison could have been a skilled doctor but instead chose to become a dedicated school teacher. Over the years, she has diagnosed and fixed systemic school challenges, repaired the broken dreams of her students, and contributed to improving the academic, emotional, and physical health of not just her students but of her entire school and community.

Details

The Milken Educator Awards, conceived 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. 

Washington, DC Milken Educators

Washington, DC joined the Milken Educator Awards program in 2003.
10 Washington, DC Milken Educator Award recipients
$250,000 cash awards presented to Washington, DC Milken Educator Award recipients

More:

Milken Educator Awards Website: www.MilkenEducatorAwards.org
Mike Milken Website: www.mikemilken.com
DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education Website: http://osse.dc.gov/
DC Public Charter School Board Website:  http://www.dcpcsb.org
Milken Family Foundation Website: www.mff.org 
Follow the Awards on Twitter, YouTube and Facebook.

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.

---