Four teachers win ‘unsung heroes’ award

Honorees from Lew Wallace, Horizon get grant

Sarah McMaster, a teacher at Horizon Academy West in Albuquerque, and a group of three teachers at Lew Wallace Elementary School in Albuquerque — Jennifer Bayley, Tina Ecker and Debbie Leyba-Angel — have landed a pair of $2,000 grants as part of the national 2017 Voya Unsung Heroes awards competition.

McMaster’s innovative teaching idea, “Capture the Sun – A Bright Idea,” focuses on teaching students the importance and benefits of clean, renewable resources such as solar energy, organizers of the program said in a news release.

The grant will provide the school with the resources necessary to develop solar kits for students that will help them develop an understanding of the future benefits of solar energy. This integrated solar curriculum, McMaster said, will serve as a hands-on introduction into the burgeoning field of STEAM research.

Bayley, Ecker and LeybaAngel developed an innovative teaching idea, “Fossils & Optics Rock!,” that focuses on increasing comprehension of geology and optics, two critical knowledge areas that students have identified as difficult to understand, organizers of grant program said.

With the Voya grant, the team plans to purchase materials for students to conduct experiments using fossils, rock samples, waves and light. Through concrete experiences with rocks, fossils, microscopes and accessible geologic timelines, Bayley and her team aim to increase student understanding of critical science concepts.

These teachers were selected from a group of more than 1,200 applicants and are among only 100 winners across the country who will receive this award to help fund and bring their programs to life.

In addition, they will now compete with other finalists for one of the top three prizes — an additional $5,000, $10,000 or $25,000 from Voya Financial.

Voya Financial Inc. provides workplace retirement solutions, including savings plans for K-12 educators.

Since 1996, the Voya Unsung Heroes program has awarded more than $5 million to help the nation’s educators turn creative teaching ideas into reality.