The Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching is an incredible honor, the highest a teacher can receive. Receiving recognition for work that I am passionate about is humbling. Representing accomplished classroom teachers who reflect on and refine their practice every day is a privilege.

Barbara Franz Moses Lake, WA | K-6, Mathematics, 2010

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

Barbara Franz has been an early childhood educator for 30 years. She has spent the last 12 years teaching kindergarten at North Elementary School in the Moses Lake School District. She has also taught at Midway Elementary School and Peninsula School in the Moses Lake School District and Bethlehem Lutheran School in Kennewick, WA. In addition to her role as kindergarten teacher, Barb serves in many leadership capacities. As chair of the Building Mathematics Leadership Team at her school and a member of her district's Mathematical Vertical Team, she supports teachers' instructional and professional development needs. Serving as a mentor allows Barb to help novice teachers develop, reflect on, and refine their practices. Barb's passion for improving student learning is evident in all that she does. Her work with her district's Mathematical Vertical Team has resulted in the development and implementation of a comprehensive District Kindergarten Mathematics Assessment, alignment of the curriculum to State standards, and development of mathematics intervention activities. Barb has a B.A., magna cum laude, in education from Concordia College and an M.Ed. from Central Washington University. She is a certified elementary teacher and a National Board Certified Early Childhood Generalist.

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