As a Presidential Award recipient, I find myself truly humbled and honored to be in the company of the nominees from years past and present. I am truly grateful for this acknowledgement and would not be receiving this award if it wasn’t for the hard work, support, and generosity of my teachers growing up, colleagues, administrators, students, families, and community members that I’ve been privileged to learn from and work with over the years.

Lynnea Shafter Meridian, ID | K-6, Science, 2016

The official biography below was current at the time of the award.

Lynnea Shafter has over 21 years of teaching experience in areas such as alternative education, eighth grade physical science, and astronomy. She has served as a kindergarten through fifth grade STEM specialist at Barbara Morgan STEM Academy for the past five years. Lynnea teaches kindergarten through fifth grade students in a lab setting, and sees every student in the school about once every four days. She engages students in real world issues through inquiry-based activities and project-based learning. She focuses on instilling the importance of respectful dialogue and critical thinking in even the youngest of learners to problem solve independently and in groups. Unique opportunities such as participating in the Mickelson ExxonMobil Teachers Academy and its Idaho team; presenting at Idaho’s education and technology conferences; participating in the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educator conference; and in-service activities within her school and district have all given her motivation, network, and resources to enhance students' experiences. Lynnea earned a B.A. in criminal justice from California State University, Long Beach and completed her teaching program at California State University, Dominguez Hills. She is certified in kindergarten through eighth grade elementary education for all subjects, and has an endorsement for sixth through ninth grade natural science.

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