Teacher now considered for national award,
trip to Washington to meet president

By JAMES EVANS
Rutherford County Schools

MURFREESBORO ­­— Gail Schulte, an instructional facilitator for Rutherford County Schools, has been named a 2011 finalist for the prestigious Presidential Award of Excellence in Mathematics and ScienceTeaching. Schulte is the only science teacher from Tennessee selected as a finalist for the award this year.

As an instructional facilitator, Schulte serves in a mentor role for newer teachers to help them build a confident foundation in the classroom. She previously worked as a science teacher at Smyrna Middle School, and a fellow teacher nominated her for the award. She then had to complete a lengthy applicationprocess, which led to being named a state finalist.

“The national committee will not release the national finalists until the end of November,” Schulte said. “There could be one science teacher and one math teacher from each state selected at this level.”

If she is selected as a national finalist, she will travel to Washington D.C. for a four-day stay where she will meet President Obama, participate in several education forums and be awarded $10,000.

She’s not completely sure what made her application stand out from other teachers in the state but does know providing real-life, relevant experiences for students is encouraged. Schulte used the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico as an ongoing project throughout the year with her science students.

“Since inquiry and technology are imbedded in our state standards as well as the national standards, this unit was full of strategies to get the students thinking outside of the box as well as to learn/research in-depth and create options on how man-made disasters affect our world,” Schulte said.

Schulte has been a teacher with Rutherford County Schools for the past four years and taught in Hamilton County previously for nine years.

Schulte already has been recognized for the award at the recent Teachers of Year banquet held in Nashville. She’ll also be recognized at the Tennessee Science Teachers Association conference, which will be held in Murfreesboro on Nov. 11.