NELMS Master in the Middle Award

NELMS Master in the Middle Award

The two 2009 award recipients are: Christine Luongo, Epping Middle School, Epping, NH; Deborah Mansfield, Jefferson Village School, Jefferson, ME.

Purpose: NELMS seeks to honor teachers who are devoted to young adolescents, committed to best middle practices, and who have taught for 20 or more years.

Selection Criteria:

Passionate about middle level education

Currently teaching middle level students

Serves as an educational leader

Advocates for the middle level community

Provides formal/informal mentoring to colleagues

Models effective middle level instructional practices, such as:

Incorporating activity-based learning
Developing a sense of student ownership in their learning
Integrating higher order thinking
Fostering curriculum connections
Using a variety of assessment tools
Building relationships with students and families

Application Process: The nominator must collect the following, and send all materials in one packet to: NELMS, 460 Boston Street, Topsfield, MA 01983.

• The nominator must address in writing how the nominee meets the six (6) criteria stated above, in 1,500 words or less, (250 words per criteria).
• The nominator must collect one letter of support, of not more than five hundred (500) words, from each of the following:
--A parent or community member associated with the nominee's current career
--A former or current student from the nominee
--A professional colleague of the nominee
• The nominee must write about an experience that exemplifies their contribution to middle level education. This submission must be in 500 words or less, that is typed and double-spaced.

Recognition:Those that receive an award will be recognized at the NELMS Annual Conference, receive a one-day registration to the annual conference, be given a one-year individual membership, and will be recognized in Mid Lines, the NELMS newspaper.

Deadline: The packet must be received by 4:30pm on October 1, 2010.