And the Oscar goes to...

OK, so this is hardly the caliber of an Oscar...our winning of the grant was not a broadcast on national television, no one critiqued what I was wearing the day we heard we were selected for the grant (at least not to me) and there were no prepared speeches. But...we first found out we were selected for the grant among friends and colleagues and the news was delivered by our principal. It felt right. Two other teams from Minturn Middle School applied for a grant to travel, and they too were awarded grant money from the same organization. We celebrated together - for each other - and for our little school in the woods. Just about half of our staff will be traveling around Europe and the US on a Fund For Teachers grant this summer. How extraordinary is that!? I felt honored to be among such a high caliber of teachers.

Having not received the grant for two years, I understand how competitive the Fund For Teacher Grant is. There are currently 165 EL Schools in 29 states. There are 4,075 teachers within the EL network. 12 groups within the EL network received funding for their research from Fund For Teachers. 3 of the 12 groups come from Minturn Middle School this year! I am still in awe that I fall within the rank of these amazing teachers. Not just teachers at MMS, but all EL teachers who applied for a grant this year. I now understand what actors mean when they say they are honored to have been nominated for an Oscar within a group of highly talented actors!

We received formal, written notification of our acceptance a few weeks ago. I was at the Post Office, on my own. I opened the letter...by myself. There were no overwhelming sounds of applause, cheers and hoots and hollers. BUT, I felt like there were. I still do. So, I'm changing my mind. This is the caliber of the Oscars! And the Oscars go to....Noel Falk and Stephanie Gallegos, Kari Bangtson and April Slagle, Tracy Teetaert and Cindy Cassidy - 3 of the 12 2010 Fund For Teachers Fellows!

Check out the Fund For Teachers Link that lists the 2010 Fellows. Under schools, click on Expeditionary Learning Schools. There you can read about all cool places teams and individuals will travel to this summer! www.fundforteachers.org

Noel