LITTLE ROCK -- Gov. Asa Hutchinson and the Arkansas Department of Education announced the creation of the Arkansas Computer Science Educator of the Year award this week as part of Computer Science Education Week.
The award will recognize an outstanding public school educator who demonstrates a strong commitment to the Computer Science Initiative, according to a news release.
"The success of Arkansas's Computer Science Initiative can largely be attributed to the outstanding computer science educators who have embraced the initiative," Hutchinson said in the release. "Their efforts to promote computer science deserve recognition, and this award will help us honor some of the best in our state."
Johnny Key, commissioner of the ADE, said his department is excited to be a part of this new program.
"This award gives us the opportunity to recognize outstanding educators who are helping Arkansas lead the nation in computer science education," he said in the release.
The application process will open in February 2019 and will be available to any educator with an Arkansas teaching license or an approved licensure exception who is currently working in an Arkansas public school, including charter school. Applicants must show their commitment to the Computer Science Initiative by demonstrating how their efforts have impacted student learning, their school and community, and the state, the release said.
Five finalists will be selected with each receiving $2,500. One finalist will be named the 2019 Arkansas Computer Science Educator of the Year and will receive an additional $12,500 award, for a total of $15,000.
The 2019 Arkansas Computer Science Educator of the Year also will receive paid registration and travel to the 2019 ADE Summit next summer and a $1,000 sponsorship to attend the 2019 Computer Science Teachers Association Annual Conference in Phoenix, Ariz., the release said.
The application process will be announced in the education department's Commissioner's Memo on Jan. 31, 2019, and the window will be open during the month of February. Finalists will be announced in March with the Educator of the Year named later in the spring.
School on 12/09/2018