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Some of the Nation's Most Accomplished STEM Teachers Selected as Albert Einstein Educator Fellows

  • 06/09/16

Washington, D.C. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — Thirteen accomplished K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers from across the United States have been named 2016-2017 Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellows. The fellows will spend 11 months serving in a federal agency or U.S. Congressional office in Washington, D.C., engaged in the national STEM education arena.

The Albert Einstein Distinguished Education Fellowship (AEF) Program provides a unique opportunity for accomplished K-12 STEM educators to apply their extensive classroom knowledge and experience to their host offices to inform federal STEM education efforts.

The 2016-17 Einstein Fellows are as follows:

  • Nathan Auck, Salt Lake City, Utah
  • Aida Awad, Des Plaines, Illinois
  • Channa Comer, Bronx, New York.
  • Alexandra Fuentes, Washington, D.C.
  • Juan Gonzalez, Laredo, Texas
  • Kayla Heimann, Mansfield, Ohio
  • Rebecca Himschoot, Sitka, Alaska
  • Douglas Hodum, Farmington, Maine
  • Jennifer Lane, Brick, New Jersey
  • Jennifer Mayo, Portland, Oregon
  • Wanda Padula, Pennellville, New York
  • Sharon Sikora, Honolulu, Hawaii
  • Adam Smith, Hood River, Oregon

The 2016-2017 Einstein Fellows come from K-12 schools across the country and represent diverse teaching backgrounds — with expertise in robotics, computer science, engineering, science and mathematics. Federal agencies and U.S. Congressional Offices will benefit from fellows’ real-world experience as educators. In return, Einstein Fellows will gain understanding of the role of the federal government in the U.S. education enterprise, knowledge of resources available to students and educators, and broader perspectives on national education issues that can be applied to the classroom or to leadership positions in their districts or elsewhere.

The AEF Program, now in its 26th year of operation, is managed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science’s Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists in collaboration with the sponsoring agencies and the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education.

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