Read the instructions below, then submit the form at the bottom of this page.
Purpose: To recognize an individual whose leadership and actions have advanced public education, the image of teachers, and the association.
Awards: The winner will be honored at the 2025 LAE Representative Assembly, on April 4-5, 2025.
The winner will also be submitted to the National Education Association for the NEA Foundation Awards for Teaching Excellence. All affiliate awardees receive expenses-paid travel to The NEA Foundation’s Annual Salute to Excellence in Education Gala in Washington, DC.
Eligibility: All current teacher members of LAE.
Selection: Affiliate Level
Criteria: Nominations are judged according to the following five criteria:
- Professional Practice
- Advocacy for the Profession
- Community Engagement
- Leadership in Professional Development
- Attention to Diversity
Based on the packet of information submitted, members of the LAE Selection Committee will rate nominees on a scale of 1 to 5 for each criterion, where ‘1’ represents “minimal” evidence of the criterion, and ‘5’ represents “very strong” evidence of the criterion.
Assembly of Nomination Packet: Nomination packages must include all materials listed below, in the specified order.
SUBMISSION
All applications MUST be submitted electronically in a Word document except for the three (3) letters of endorsement which should be scanned into a PDF file and the photograph of the nominee which should be attached in a JPEG file.
Deadline: Friday, February 28, 2025.
Notification: LAE will notify the winner by March 7, 2025.
Nominations that do not conform to ALL deadlines and ALL format specifications will be disqualified.
REQUIREMENTS
Current LAE membership
Submission of an electronic portfolio including ONLY the following:
Criteria: Applications for the LAE Teacher Image Award are judged according to five criteria.
Panelists rate awardees on each criterion using the point value indicated below.
1) Professional Practice: The awardee demonstrates instructional expertise, creativity, and innovation. The awardee uses a variety of pedagogical techniques and effectively addresses students’ different learning styles and needs. The awardee is an instructional leader at the local, state, and/or national level. (15 points)
2) Advocacy for the Profession: The awardee is a current, active member of the local, state, and/or national education association, and has assumed leadership roles at one or more of these levels. The awardee is an active member of other professional organizations and engages in activities that advance the profession and public education. The awardee speaks out on behalf of public education, educators, and students. (15 points)
3) Community Engagement: The awardee frequently interacts with parents and other community members on substantive education issues. The awardee brings community resources to the classroom and conducts service learning projects with his or her students in the community. (5 points)
4) Leadership in Professional Development: The awardee continually engages in experiences to improve his or her practice and to gain new skills and knowledge. The awardee shares this new learning with colleagues in a variety of venues. The awardee’s participation in and commitment to professional development has a visible impact on his or her institution, students, and community. (10 points)
5) Attention to Diversity: The awardee works to provide a learning environment that meets the needs of all students, regardless of differences. The awardee recognizes and explicitly addresses the full array of values, cultures, and experiences represented in our diverse modern society, both through curriculum and instruction and in other interactions with students. (5 points)
Contents of Nomination Packet
Nomination packages must include all of the items listed below, in the specified order. and follow the formatting instructions:
- Double-spaced
- Times New Roman font
- 12-point type
- 1-inch margins all around
- Handwritten information is NOT allowed.
1. DATA SHEET (One page maximum)
The data sheet requests contact information for the awardee and the awardee’s local affiliate.
2. NOMINATION LETTER (Three-page maximum)
The nomination letter from the state, federal, or direct affiliate president explains why the awardee deserves a national award. Alternatively, a local president can write the official nomination letter outlining the awardee’s qualifications and the state president can attach an additional page with one sentence certifying the nomination.
3. RESUME
The resume provides a brief, factual overview of the awardee’s career, including positions held, degrees attained, honors received, etc. The resume may also describe personal achievements or activities that are not noted elsewhere.
4. AWARDEE’S STATEMENT (3400-word maximum/submitted as part of the single Word file)
The awardee’s statement must be written by the awardee, as a first-person narrative. The statement includes specific examples to illustrate all five of the award criteria. The questions below do not need to be copied verbatim in the text. However, awardees are strongly encouraged to include headings or keywords related to the criteria to aid the panelists in their reading.
4a) What are the most successful innovations that you have introduced in your classroom or school? What strategies or methods do you use to ensure that all students achieve at a high level? How do you act as an instructional leader?
4b) How has your involvement in the Louisiana Association of Educators and the National Education Association contributed to your success as an educator? How would you persuade a new colleague to join or become more active in the association? In what other ways do you serve as an advocate for the profession and for public education?
4c) What community resources do you bring to the classroom to enhance your lessons and student achievement? What service learning projects have you conducted with your students to benefit the community?
4d) What experiences or activities have been most beneficial to your professional knowledge, skills, and practice? How have you contributed to the professional development of your colleagues? How has your professional growth made a difference for your school or university, your students, and your community? Include examples.
4e) How do you address issues of diversity in your curriculum and instruction and in other interactions with students? What is the result of such efforts? How does your approach to diversity affect your work?
4f) If you have not already done so, tell a story about how your approach to teaching made a difference for a student or a group of students.
4g) What advice would you give to someone entering the profession on how to attain teaching excellence?
5. ENDORSEMENT LETTERS (A maximum of three letters, two-page maximum each. All letters must be scanned into a PDF file)
Letters of endorsement are written by the awardee’s local affiliate president, colleagues, current or former students, parents, or community members. Letters should be signed, and the salutation should be addressed to the Louisiana Association of Educators’ Executive Committee or the national panel for The NEA Foundation Awards for Teaching Excellence.
