Six District educators were recently recognized by the District of Columbia Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) for the 2014-2015 school year during the inaugural DC Educators Award Celebration at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. NBC4 news anchor Aaron Gilchrist served as the master of ceremony.
Annually, OSSE recognizes public school educators in recognition of their outstanding teaching and professional leadership in and out of the classroom. Speakers included DC Deputy Mayor Jennifer Niles, DC Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson, DC Public Charter School Board Chair Darren Woodruff, Acting State Superintendent of Education Hansuel Kang, Peggy Brookins, Executive Vice President of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, Dr. Nafeesa Owens, Program Director for the Excellence Awards in Science and Engineering at the National Science Foundation, and Dr. Jane Foley with the Milken Family Foundation. Additionally, Bruce Monroe Elementary students Oscar Dubon and Atianda Broadnax and Lismeyri Encarnacion-Ruiz read letters about how important their teachers are to them.
The District’s educator award program also included District educators who have received national recognition. Jennifer Ramacciotti, an 8th grade math teacher at KIPP DC AIM Academy, was recognized as the 2015 DC Teacher of the Year. The other honorees included 2014 DC History Teacher of the Year Winner Barrie Moorman of E.L. Haynes High School; 2014 Milken Educator Michelle Johnson of Seaton Elementary School; 2014 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) finalists Vanessa Ford of Maury Elementary School; Kristina Kellogg of Watkins Elementary; and Michael Mangiaracina of Brent Elementary.
View the video of the honorees here. View the pictures from the event here.
Bios of 2014-15 Educator Honorees:
2015 DC Teacher of the Year (DCTOY) Winner - Jennifer Ramacciotti, KIPP DC AIM Academy
Jennifer Ramacciotti is completing her ninth year as an educator. After graduating from George Washington University, she moved to Philadelphia to teach 4th and 5th grade as a member of Teach for America. Wanting to return to the nation’s capital and make DC her permanent home, Ramacciotti joined the KIPP DC staff as a 6th grade math teacher at KIPP DC AIM Academy in Anacostia. She taught 6th grade math for two years, served as grade level chair, math department chair and served as vice principal of the school from 2010 to 2013. Jennifer missed the joys, rewards and challenges of the classroom and returned to teaching in 2013 as AIM Academy’s 8th grade math teacher. She continues to teach 8th grade math this year, preparing her students for high school, college and the world beyond.
2014 DC History Teacher of the Year Winner - Barrie Moorman, E.L. Haynes High School
Barrie Moorman is a US History and Sociology teacher at E.L. Haynes High School. She is a founding teacher at the high school campus and has developed curriculum for World History, US History and, Sociology courses. She also leads a weeklong civil rights trip for her students each spring, during which students visit civil rights landmarks, meet with social justice activists, and brainstorm action plans to interrupt injustice in their own communities. Moorman facilitates E.L. Haynes’ Race and Equity in Education Seminars, which require staff members to examine how the skin they’re in affects how they teach and lead. She has facilitated seminars at Haynes, as well as with other partners, including DCPS’ Office of Human Capital. In Moorman’s class, students examine multiple perspectives on historical events and seek to interrupt dominant narratives that maintain the status quo. Prior to E.L. Haynes, Moorman taught for six years at Capital City Public Charter School, where she was also a founding staff member at the Upper School Campus. She was recently recognized by Teaching Tolerance with their 2014 Award for Excellence in Teaching for her work to reduce prejudice and promote equity within the school community. She also received a Fund for Teachers grant this past year, which allowed her to travel to South Africa with a colleague to examine the legacy of youth activism against apartheid.
2014 Milken Educator Award – Michelle Johnson, Seaton Elementary School
Michelle Johnson is a constant learner who is always seeking to improve her practices and get better results for her students at Seaton Elementary School. When looking at the data, her results are phenomenal. She halved the number of “far below” grade level students in her class and improved students’ reading at a faster pace than any other teacher in the building. Continually seeking to grow as an educator, Johnson participated in the Common Core Reading Corps, writing extensive curriculum that is now used on a daily basis by every second grade teacher in the district. Previously, Johnson taught fourth grade in the United Arab Emirates for two years and kindergarten in Prince George’s County, Maryland. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Tennessee with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. She also received a master of Professional Studies in Political Management from the George Washington Graduate School of Political Management.
2014 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) Finalists:
Vanessa Ford, Maury Elementary School
Vanessa Ford began teaching in Washington, DC as a 2002 Teach For America corps member and has worked in DC public and charter schools since then, teaching grades 3, 5, 6 and 8, and serving as an instructional coach. Ford originally received her BA from Bates College and later earned her MAT in Elementary Education from Trinity University. In 2011, Vanessa joined DCPS's Maury Elementary as the STEM Coordinator and leads the unique inquiry-based Think Tank program for grades PS-5th. Ford has worked closely in the review and implementation phases of the Next Generation Science Standards at the national and local levels through work with Achieve, as an NGSS and NSTA curator and member of the OSSE Science Leadership Cadre. Ford is a member of DCPS' “Teaching in Action” program as well as a Teacher Selection Ambassador. She lives with her husband, two children and dog in Washington, DC.
Kristina Kellogg, Watkins Elementary
Kristina Kellogg has spent the past 14 years empowering the youth of the Washington, DC metro area as a transformative and innovative elementary school teacher. Her career began as an Instructional Systems of Mathematics teacher in Montgomery County Public Schools. As a product of DC Public schools, Kellogg made the decision to return home. She spent the next 6 years as a 2nd grade teacher at Truesdell Elementary School. During this time she became a National Board Certified Teacher, building her capacity as a reflective practitioner. She accepted a position to teach 4th grade at Watkins Elementary School, where she has remained for 8 years. While at Watkins, Kellogg was able to rediscover her love of teaching by showing students how to analyze mathematical concepts, making the professional shift as a math teacher. Ms. Kellogg currently teaches 4th grade Math and Science. In addition to this role, Kellogg serves as the Teacher Lead, an Ambassador for Blended Learning and a member of the Academic Leadership Team. As a 2014 Teacher Central to Leadership Fellow she brought her educational insight to the Office of Youth Engagement. Her commitment to ensuring academic excellence for all children has afforded her the opportunity to participate as a Consulting Teacher in the Teaching In Action Program.
Michael Mangiaracina, Brent Elementary
Michael Mangiaracina has been teaching for 20 years, spending most of his time in the classroom teaching elementary and middle school science and math. He spent 10 years of his career in two Quaker Middle Schools, most recently Sidwell Friends School. Feeling the call to serve in our city’s public schools, Mangiaracina went back to school seven years ago for a Master’s of Elementary Education with a focus in urban schools. Since then, Mike has been with DCPS, teaching 1st-5th grade science at Brent Elementary. In addition to his teaching duties, Mangiaracina has run after school clubs like the Rube Goldberg Society and Urban Birders, as well as Brent’s annual Math and Science nights. He also runs the very popular New Year’s Bird Count for Kids, an annual bird census that draws hundreds of community members for a morning of winter bird-watching.
For more information on OSSE’s educator awards, visit osse.dc.gov.