MSTA's own Barbara Fortier has been awarded the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching! Congratulations! WASHINGTON—The White House announced today that 99 educators will receive the annual Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching for 2007. The teachers will be recognized in an award’s ceremony as the nation’s best seventh through twelfth grade teachers. Awardees are selected from mathematics and science teachers in all 50 States and the District of Columbia, with the competition alternating each year between kindergarten through sixth grade teachers and seventh through twelfth grade teachers. After an initial selection process at the state level, a national panel of distinguished scientists, mathematicians, and educators recommend teachers to receive the Presidential Awards. The awards are administered by the National Science Foundation. Each award recipient will receive a $10,000 educational grant to be used at his or her discretion over a three-year period, and an all expense paid trip for two to Washington D.C. to accept the certificate. The teachers are in the Nation's capital from April 28-May 3, to receive the award and participate in a variety of educational and celebratory events. The teachers took a group picture with Vice President Cheney on Wednesday and will be honored with an awards ceremony hosted by Dr. Arden Bement, Director of the National Science Foundation on Friday evening. They will meet Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, a NASA Astronaut – Mission Specialist, as well as members of Congress and the Administration to discuss the latest issues in mathematics and science teaching, and share their expertise and viewpoints with their colleagues. The award was established in 1983 by the Education for Economic Security Act and is given annually to math and science teachers across the United States who make outstanding contributions to their students and schools.