Esencia Elementary School teacher Leslie Whitaker was named a state finalist for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). It is the second time Whitaker has been named a finalist for the national award, which will be announced later this year. She is one of three state finalists in the math category.
A teacher in CUSD since 1999, Whitaker is currently a math teacher on special assignment at Esencia. She has worked with a team at the Orange County Department of Education to provide professional development in Cognitively Guided Instruction for transitional kindergarten through fifth grade teachers. A teacher for 22 years, Leslie has presented at multiple conferences, including California Mathematics Council South as well as the Cognitively Guided Instruction Biennial Conference in 2015. She also wrote Canvas third grade math lessons for CUSD distance learning.
“Leslie is an enthusiastic and dedicated professional, committed to ensuring great outcomes for students,” said Brad Shearer, CUSD Assistant Superintendent, Curriculum and Instruction, PK-5. “She is a strong teacher leader who has provided invaluable training and support for her peers. In the past she has trained CUSD staff on Cognitively Guided Instruction, emphasizing the shifts in instructional pedagogy that are needed to ensure that students understand math concepts deeply and can communicate their understanding well. Many of the sites she trained several years ago saw significant gains in their Math scores on the Smarter Balanced Assessments. She is tremendously effective at teaching these intricate concepts and how to effectively communicate them to students.”
The PAEMST program is administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF) on behalf of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Presidential Award recipients are honored at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., and receive a $10,000 special award from the NSF.
Awards are given to teachers who teach science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), and/or computer science from each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Department of Defense schools, and four U.S. territories (as a group).
The California Department of Education (CDE) partners with the California Mathematics Council and the California Association of Science Educators to recruit and select nominees for the PAEMST program. Each applicant must display subject mastery, appropriate use of instructional methods and strategies, lifelong learning, and leadership in education outside the classroom. Each candidate is also required to submit a 30-minute video lesson in support of their application.