Outstanding Earth Science Teacher Award

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The Award

Nominations are due February 1

Outstanding Earth Science Teacher (OEST) awards are given for "exceptional contributions to the stimulation of interest in the Earth Sciences at the pre-college level." Any teacher or other K-12 educator who covers a significant amount of earth science content with their students is eligible. Eight national finalists are selected, one from each NAGT regional section. Some sections also recognize state/province winners. Individuals may apply themselves or nominate a colleague for the award.

The Outstanding Earth Science Teacher Awards program was adopted by NAGT in 1971. Devised to honor pre-college teachers of earth science, the program has the following specific objectives:

  • Identify excellence in teaching
  • Appropriately recognize and reward excellence in teaching
  • Stimulate higher levels of teaching performance
  • Establish NAGT as a strong support organization for pre-college education, and
  • Via active statewide and sectional programs, build a solid state, regional, and national liaison with administrators of pre-college earth science education.

OEST State and Section winners are strongly encouraged to take an active role in NAGT, NESTA, and all other organizations that support the OEST Award Program.

Learn more about what Section winners receive

Learn more about what state/province winners receive

Award Recipients

2024 Section & State/Province Recipients

Section Winners

  • Eastern Section: David W. Curry
  • Far Western Section: Kellyn Hardin
  • North Central Section: No Award in 2024
  • Northeastern Section: Anna V. Cotton
  • Pacific Northwest Section: Bryon Free
  • Rocky Mountain Section: Lesley Urasky
  • South Central Section: Tabetha Hollin
  • Southeastern Section: Alicia (Ali) Pressel

State/Province Winners

  • Alabama: Cinthia Moore
  • Arizona: Lisa Chavez
  • British Columbia: Clayton Fox
  • California: Kellyn Hardin
  • Colorado: Matt Thomas
  • Florida: Alicia (Ali) Pressel
  • Georgia: Christine Wallace
  • Montana: Tom Caffrey
  • New Jersey: Simone Cella Miller
  • New York: Michael Fodera
  • North Carolina: Joshua Roberts
  • Oregon: Bryon Free
  • Pennsylvania: David W. Curry
  • South Carolina: Jimmy Woods
  • Virginia: Madeleine Rushing Yiznitsky
  • Wyoming: Lesley Urasky


View all past OEST Section and state/province recipients.

Make a Nomination

To nominate a teacher for this award, please complete the online nomination form associated with the nominee's Section, linked below. You can find information on which section you live in by checking out the Regional Sections. Nominations are due by February 1st. Nominations may be submitted at any time during the year. Nominations will be eligible for three years from the initial submission.

To ensure broad recognition of excellence in Earth Science teaching, the OEST award may be granted to an individual no more than twice in their career (e.g., once in early career and once in late career). This approach allows us to honor outstanding educators while also providing opportunities for new recipients to be recognized for their contributions.

Nominations will be reviewed by the NAGT OEST Section Committees using this rubric and set of criteria (Acrobat (PDF) 50kB Mar22 24).

Nomination Forms and Contact for Each Section

When a Section does not have an OEST Coordinator, the OEST Committee Chair is the acting contact for that Section.

Contacts

OEST Committee Chair: Meghan Cook

NAGT Executive Office