Mount Vernon History Teacher of the Year

The home of George Washington is looking for D.C.-area teachers who bring creativity and passion to their teaching, generate a love of learning, and deepen their students' understanding and appreciation of history. The Mount Vernon History Teacher of the Year will receive a $5,000 cash award, an all expenses-paid field trip to Mount Vernon for his or her students, as well as the opportunity to participate in the 2014 week-long residential George Washington Teachers' Institute. The top finalist will receive free admission to Mount Vernon for up to 75 students and chaperones. 

Selection Criteria:

• Full-time teachers, with at least two years of experience, who teach American history at the elementary, middle, or high school level
• Creativity and accuracy in lesson development and classroom teaching
• Ability to integrate primary documents and material culture into the study of history
• Dedication to improving their students' understanding of historical content as well as fostering their knowledge of the importance of the study of history
• Ability to cultivate in their students an abiding interest in and passion for the study of history
• Residence in the Washington, D.C., area. In Virginia this includes the following cities or counties: Alexandria, Fairfax, Arlington, Falls Church, Prince William, Loudon, Stafford, and Fredericksburg. In Maryland this includes the following cities or counties: Montgomery, Prince George's, Howard, Charles, and Baltimore. The District of Columbia is also included.

Application Procedure

Please send a resume, a letter of support from a principal or county superintendent, a letter of support from a colleague or department chair, a brief essay (two pages maximum) describing your approach to teaching history, and a sample lesson plan or student project that highlights your use of primary documents and/or material culture in the classroom. Materials should be sent via fax, email, or regular mail.

Application deadline: June 3, 2013

Contact: Danie Schallom, dschallom@mountvernon.org, 703-799-5082; Fax: 703-799-5212; (please write "Teacher of the Year" in the subject line); Address: Mount Vernon Education Department, P.O. Box 110, Mount Vernon, VA 22121

About This Year's Winner

The Mount Vernon History Teacher of the Year Award was presented on July 18, 2012 to Brian Rohal, an AP U.S. History, AP U.S. Government, and Introduction to Law teacher at Thurgood Marshall Academy Public Charter High School in Anacostia.

Brian’s path to the classroom is not a typical one.  He earned his undergraduate degree in Economics and Government from the University of Notre Dame, and then went on to receive his law degree from Duke. After practicing law for several years in our nation’s capital, Brian changed course, and earned a master’s in secondary education from George Washington University.

He now teaches  in the most impoverished area of the nation’s capitol, where one half of the adults are illiterate, and more than 75% of the students in his school qualify for Title I funding.  He teaches in an open-admission school, where the 100% African America student body arrives with no specially pre-selected skills or talents.  As he wrote in his nomination, his AP History class is open to any student who wants to take it, as long as they are willing to do the work.  Brian believes that every student is interested in American history although some don’t realize it at first because they don’t understand what it means to learn history. Brian has produced high success rates in student passing scores on AP exams for a number of years, with approximately half of his students passing with a 3 or better, and nearly every students earning a 2 or better.