GOVERNOR OTTER HONORS SCIENCE TEACHERS WITH GIANTS AWARD

(BOISE) – Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter today recognized the exceptional efforts of three Idaho science teachers by presenting them with the 2009 GIANTS Award at a ceremony held at the Discovery Center of Idaho.

Post Falls High School teacher Salvatore Lorenzen; Daniel Richards of Meadow Valley Schools (New Meadows); and Vision Charter School (Caldwell) teacher Tricia Huckins were awarded $2,000 each as recipients of the Governor’s Industry Award for Notable Teaching in Science (GIANTS).

“Salvatore, Daniel, and Tricia are models for how educators can work with industry to enhance science and technology education,” Governor Otter said. “Teachers have a tremendous responsibility to prepare today’s students for tomorrow’s workforce. More than ever, we need teachers who can inspire students to lives spent in discovery, learning and achievement. Those teachers who excel deserve our support and recognition.”

The GIANTS program was initiated by the Office of the Governor and is sponsored by the Science and Technology Roundtable – a group of industry leaders including the Micron Foundation, Idaho National Laboratory, URS-Washington Division, Hewlett-Packard, LCF Enterprises, Premier Technology, Inc., and Idaho Power Company. With support from the Idaho State Commercial Innovation Division, the State Department of Education and Office of the State Board of Education, as well as the Discovery Center of Idaho, GIANTS recognizes teachers for their efforts to link industry and the economic future of Idaho to the classroom by enhancing science and technology education.

Honorable Mention awards of $500 each were presented to two additional teachers and two elementary teams of teachers: DaNel Huggins of Kuna High School, Susan Kirking of Jenifer Junior High School (Lewiston), the TESLA team at Orchards Elementary School (Lewiston) and the NASA team from Kenneth J. Carberry Intermediate School (Emmett).

All the participating teachers were nominated by the student council and/or parent groups at their school for making science exciting, challenging, and relevant. A cash prize of $500 goes to each school/student council that nominated the GIANTS award recipients, with a cash prize of $100 going to each school/student council that nominated the Honorable Mention award recipients.

The GIANTS partners are firmly committed to advancing science and technology education and consider it vital to Idaho’s economic future. The Governor and the industry partners congratulate this year’s winners and honorable mentions for their significant contributions to education.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Attached is a brief summary for each of the award recipients.

Elementary School GIANTS Awardee:
The 2009 elementary school winner is Tricia Huckins who teaches at Vision Charter School in Caldwell. Tricia has a bachelor of science degree from Northwest Nazarene University and was recognized as a top-five nominee for Idaho Teacher of the Year in 2009.

Tricia is a member of the NNU Alumni Association and serves on the Vision Charter PFA and Art Committee. She has also been an Invention Convention and Science Fair Classroom participant.

Tricia engages her students in hands-on learning through the school garden, science fair, and science experiments. Using an integrated approach she is able to tie science into math, English, history, art, and practical life applications.

Middle School GIANTS Awardee:
The GIANTS Middle School Teacher is Daniel Richards of Meadow Valley Schools in New Meadows. As a teacher and mentor, Mr. Richards has been brining an appreciation of science to his students and community for the past 28 years.

Mr. Richards engages his entire community in science learning throughout the school year and in the summer. Students look forward to the annual week-long science trip they take with Mr. Richards to different ecological and geographical sites where they create podcasts, notebooks, and journals describing their experiences. Mr. Richards models the trip based on his own experiences from conducting hands-on research.

Daniel has a bachelor of science and a master’s degree in biology from Idaho State University.

High School GIANTS Awardee:
The GIANTS High School Awardee is Salvatore Lorenzen. Mr. Lorenzen is the Professional Technical Department Chair at Post Falls High School and has been teaching Technology Education since 2002.

As the leader and advisor of the school’s FIRST Robotics Team and a variety of other student clubs, Mr. Lorenzen has dedicated countless hours helping students of all backgrounds come together to put application to science and technology. As a result, student participation has been off the charts. Mr. Lorenzen has also worked with local industry to create a professional-technical advisory committee focused on bridging the gap between education and local industry.

After serving in the United States Navy as a Cryptological Maintenance Technician, Salvatore took his passion for technology to the classroom and, in 2002, he received his bachelor of science degree in Education from the University of Idaho. His professional memberships include the Northwest Counsel for Computer Education, Moodle Users Group and PFEA.

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