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Teacher from Overland Park, Kan., Earns Honorable Mention from Presidential Award Program for Environmental Educators

Release Date: 08/12/2014
Contact Information: Chris Whitley, 913-551-7394, whitley.christopher@epa.gov

Environmental News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Lenexa, Kan., Aug. 12, 2014) - Eric Kessler, Bioscience Director for the Center for Advanced Professional Studies at the Blue Valley School District in Overland Park, Kan., has been recognized in the Honorable Mention category of the 2014 Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators competition, EPA Region 7 announced today.

The Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators (PIAEE) recognizes outstanding kindergarten through grade 12 teachers who employ innovative approaches to environmental education and use the environment as a learning context for their students. The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), in partnership with EPA, administers this award to honor educators who incorporate environmental education in their classrooms and teaching methods.

Up to two teachers from each of EPA’s 10 regions are selected each year to receive top PIAEE awards. Each EPA region may also recognize teachers for Honorable Mention awards, and Kessler was selected in EPA Region 7 for his efforts in working with Blue Valley North High School’s Biology and Life Science students.

Teachers Kristine Denton, from King Science & Technology Magnet Middle School in Omaha, Neb., and Darrin Peters, from Rockwood Summit High School in Fenton, Mo., are EPA Region 7’s two top PIAEE honorees for 2014. Nationwide this year, the program named 17 teachers as top honorees and recognized 15 other teachers, including Kessler, for Honorable Mention.

Applications for the 2015 Presidential Innovation Awards for Environmental Educators will be accepted beginning later this fall. For more information about the award program, visit the PIAEE website.