The Presidential Award is an immense honor. This prestigious award could not have been achieved without inspiration, guidance, and encouragement from students, their families, colleagues, and my own family. These individuals, combined with a supportive work environment, are truly a blessing! Receiving this award further ignites my passion for teaching and validates that all students can successfully engage in rigorous lessons that increase confidence and cultivate an interest in science.

Monica Dreiling Hays, KS | K-6, Science, 2018

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

Monica Dreiling has been an educator for 20 years, teaching fifth grade science and language arts for the past five years at Lincoln Elementary School. She previously taught special education for 15 years, at Lincoln Elementary School, LaCrosse Elementary School and Ruppenthal Middle School. She has been an adjunct instructor at Fort Hays State University for 12 years. Monica was awarded numerous grants which created unique science learning opportunities, including an engineering unit to create a prosthetic leg for an injured dog, an intergenerational STEM partnership with assisted-living residents, and two robotics teams. Monica collaborated with the local university to program a NAO Humanoid Robot to teach science content and to improve student communication skills. Monica has presented at conferences locally and across the state of Kansas. She is a member of numerous educational organizations and serves as an educational mentor. Monica earned a B.S. in elementary education and a M.S. in cross-categorical special education from Fort Hays State University. Monica is certified in kindergarten through ninth grade elementary education and K-12 special education, and holds endorsements for English to speakers of other languages, gifted, and building leadership. Monica is a National Board Certified Teacher (Exceptional Needs Specialist/Early Childhood Through Young Adulthood).

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