Nominate a K-12 Teacher of American History for the 2023 DC History Teacher of the Year Award

OSSE, in partnership with The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, is seeking nominations for the 2024 DC History Teacher of the Year. Nominations are encouraged for a teacher that has made an impact–whether it be this year or from past years, and can be submitted using this nomination form. Each year this award recognizes an outstanding K–12 teacher from a public, public charter or private DC schools who finds creative ways to bring history to life in their classrooms.

Any full-time K–12 educator who teaches American history (including state and local history) as either an individual subject or as part of other subjects, such as social studies, reading, or language arts, is eligible for the award. Eligible generalist and specialist teachers in the District of Columbia are encouraged to apply. All nominated teachers must meet the following criteria:

• Current teacher in a District of Columbia public, public charter, private or religious school;
• At least three years of classroom teaching experience;
• Will teach for at least one year following the award year;
• A demonstrated commitment to teaching American history;
• Evidence of creativity and imagination in the classroom; and
• Effective use of documents, artifacts, historic sites, oral histories, and other primary sources to engage students with American history.
• Consideration of these factors will be based on the grade level taught in order to accommodate the teaching requirements of both generalist and specialist teachers.

Nominations can be made by a student, parent, colleague, or principal or other administrator or community member familiar with the teacher’s work. Self-nominations are not accepted. Past state and national winners are not eligible. All nominations are made on the Gilder Lehrman website by completing this short nomination form with the teacher’s contact information.

The deadline for 2024 nominations is April 30, 2024. Learn more and nominate a teacher at gilderlehrman.org/nhtoy.

Previous DC winners of the award can be viewed here. For more information about the national award program, please visit the official website.

For questions, please contact Madison Kantzer at [email protected] or Megan Dumond at [email protected].