- More than 30 teachers recognized; total awards equal $87,000
DETROIT, May 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The DaimlerChrysler
Corporation Fund honored the winners of the "Closing the Technology
Gap in Education" Awards on Saturday, May 19. The award program, in
its second year, recognized Michigan public school educators who
have taken extra steps to stimulate students in the areas of
science, technology, engineering and math. With this award program,
the Company continues to encourage students to pursue careers in
technical fields, filling future jobs in the auto industry.
"Chrysler Group supports education because it's important to our
business," said Eric Ridenour, Chrysler Group Chief Operating
Officer. "In many industries -- the auto industry included --
producing the most important new products and services depends on
maintaining the worldwide technological lead, year in and year out.
At Chrysler Group, we look for the best and the brightest, and we
want to encourage young people to enter fields that require
technical backgrounds. It's imperative for our future workforce."
Twenty nine schools received 30 cash prizes totaling $87,000. Ten
prizes were awarded on each school level: elementary, middle/junior
and high school. First through third-prize winners received
$15,000, $7,500 and $3,000, respectively. Winners who placed fourth
through 10th place received $500 grants. Grants go to the schools
and are used to build the science, math, engineering and technology
curriculum's. The awards program received hundreds of entries. One
of the submissions demonstrated a teacher's love for science and
space. With the teacher's guidance, the class experienced astronaut
training, including buoyancy exercises and live video-conferences
with NASA astronauts. Another entry showed how students learned
about the relationship between the sun and the earth. The students
marked the sun's altitude at various times during the day and also
created graphs to show how daylight increases and decreases
throughout the year. "It is exciting to find teachers who are doing
creative wonderful things every day to create Michigan's next
generation of engineers and scientists," said Kevin Prihod, Detroit
Science Center President and CEO. "At the Detroit Science Center,
we try to spark an interest in engineering. These award winning
teachers turn that spark into a roaring inferno." "Through their
commitment and dedication to teaching, these educators have gone
above and beyond to awaken the imaginations of our kids to the
possibilities the study of mathematics and the sciences hold," said
Governor Jennifer Granholm. "What they do every day in the
classroom is key to our children's future success and to Michigan
economic success as well, because the cutting-edge jobs that are
coming to Michigan require workers with the type of quality
education these teachers are providing." Ridenour presented the
awards to the following teachers and their respective schools:
Elementary Ruth Cummins, Cherokee Elementary School, Clinton
Township, Chippewa Valley Schools, First Place Beverly Fanelli and
Suzanne O'Brien, Fox Elementary School, Macomb, Chippewa Valley
Schools, Second Place John F. Prisciandaro, Birmingham Covington
School, Bloomfield Hills, Birmingham School District Third Place
Fourth to Tenth Place Laura Amatulli, Avondale Meadows Upper
Elementary School, Rochester Hills, Avondale School District
Lucinda Mitchell, Ruth Fox Elementary School, North Branch, North
Branch Area Schools Mary Ellen Merglewski, Gretchko Elementary
School, West Bloomfield, West Bloomfield School District Connie
Atkisson, O.W. Holmes Elementary School, Detroit, Detroit Public
Schools Diane Watt Graham, Woodcreek Science, Math and Engineering
Magnet School, Lansing, Lansing School District P. Kathryn Russell,
Graveraet Intermediate School, Marquette, Marquette Public Schools
Melanie Flood, Mary Kay Fraser and Janet King, Bennie Elementary,
Allen Park, Allen Park Public Schools Middle School Allen Birkholz,
Bloomfield Hills Middle School, Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Hills
Public Schools First Place Kirt Van Overen, Pinewood Middle School,
Kentwood, Kentwood Public Schools, Second Place Jon W. Gray, Waldon
Middle School, Lake Orion, Lake Orion Community Schools, Third
Place Fourth to Tenth Place Diana R. Schulz, Laker Junior High
School, Pigeon, Elkton-Pigeon Bay Port Laker Schools Patricia Ann
McNinch, Mayville Middle School, Mayville, Mayville Community
Schools Jeffrey T. Bradley, Slauson Middle School, Ann Arbor, Ann
Arbor Public Schools Brian Hadfield, Seneca Middle School, Clinton
Township, Chippewa Valley Schools John M. Martin, Isaac Crary
Middle School, Waterford, Waterford School District Kathryn
Meloche, Clippert Academy, Detroit, Detroit Public Schools June L.
Teisan, Harper Woods Middle School, Harper Woods, Harper Woods
School District High School David Zulkiewski, Lahser High School,
Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Hills Public Schools, First Place
Julie Mossburg, Milan High School, Milan, Milan Area Schools,
Second Place Russell Billings Kearsley High School, Flint, Kearsley
Community Schools, Third Place Fourth to Tenth Place Mark Supal,
Macomb Mathematics, Science and Technology Center, Warren, Macomb
Intermediate School District Karen Schmitt, Marquette Senior High
School, Marquette, Marquette Public Schools Kenn Urban, Southfield
High School, Southfield, Southfield Public Schools Matthew Tuckey,
Bad Axe High School, Bad Axe, Bad Axe Public Schools Brian
Derowski, Sanilac County Science and Mathematics Center, Peck,
Sanilac County Intermediate School District Kyle Hughes, Clarkston
High School - OSMTech, Clarkston, Clarkston Community Schools G.
Michael Terrell, Southfield High School, Southfield, Southfield
Public Schools DATASOURCE: Chrysler Group CONTACT: Curtrise Garner,
+1-248-512-2712, cell, +1-248-761-8309, , or David Elshoff,
+1-248-512-2690, cell, +1-248-797-2300, , both of Chrysler Group
Web site: http://www.media.daimlerchrysler.com/
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