Shippensburg University Alumnus Joel Crowley received a Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST), the highest honor bestowed by the United States government to K-12 teachers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and/or computer science. Established by Congress in 1983, the program honors up to 108 exemplary teachers each year.
Crowley has spent 11 years as an educator at the Milton Hershey School and currently serves as the first through fourth grade innovation lab instructor. In this role he developed new curriculum focused on coding, robotics, computer science, digital citizenship, career and technical education, engineering and design thinking. He has engaged students in projects that range from collaborating with NASA’s student spaceflight experiments program to improving baby goat enclosures for local farmers.
According to the PAEMST website, as a recipient of the award Crowley receives a certificate signed the President of the United States, a strip to Washington D.C. to attend a series of recognition events and professional development opportunities and a $10,000 award from the National Science Foundation.
