 Educators like Terry Butts deserve our utmost gratitude for all that they do every day to help their students learn. Every year we honor public school educators for instructional excellence, advocacy for the profession and attention to diversity with the NEA Foundation Award for Teaching Excellence. Listen to what Terry has to say about her experience, learn how students benefit and prepare to be inspired. My experience with the NEA Foundation Awards for Teaching Excellence has just been life-changing. I would definitely have to say professionally it has been life-changing. I've been able to meet so many different people and has just given me a broader stage upon which to be an advocate for professional educators and for professional development. I've had an opportunity just to share why I think it's important for every child to have a wonderful learning experience every day. As an educator for the past 19 years, I had an opportunity just to impact the students in my classroom but now as a curriculum specialist with our child development program I have over 500 students that I'm impacting and with the Global Learning Fellowship learning how to be a culturally responsive teacher I'm now able to just provide professional development to all of those teachers in my 30 classrooms which hopefully will make the impact in those classrooms. I think it's so important for the NEA Foundation to provide teachers with this Global Learning Fellowship because it just helps us to broaden our cultural perspective you know we think that the children that are in our classroom are all the same just because our ethnicities are the same the cultural values and perspectives and beliefs that we have not the same so that professional development that's such an advantage that we're provided with when we're able to be a part of this Global Learning Fellowship. Any State affiliate leader who is considering this should not hesitate this would be an awesome opportunity just for them to be able to share the great things that are going on in their state and the great educators that they have in their state. You have so many teachers who hone their craft every day you know we are leaders in our profession we dedicate ourselves daily to our children we hone our craft so that we can be to the betterment of our students and these teachers are advocates they let their wings fly every single day and this will be their opportunity to share that with everyone else. The NEA Foundation knows that there are so many stories just like mine you know I am not the only one that is doing this every single day there are stories across this country that need to be told about what teachers are doing every day. Every NEA State affiliate has until May 1st to nominate a public school educator for this prestigious national award. All awardees are invited to join the NEA Foundation Global Learning Fellowship this 10-month professional development opportunity provides educators with the knowledge and skills to prepare their students to thrive in our flat world. Find out more information about the awards the fellowship and the NEA Foundation at NEAFoundation.org