Two Maryland Teachers Receive National Honors in Math, Science Education

Educators Among 140 Receiving PAEMST Awards

BALTIMORE – Two Maryland teachers are among 140 across the nation to receive the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST), announced this week in Washington, DC.

Florence Falatko, a teacher at Cromwell Valley Elementary Magnet School in Baltimore County for Mathematics, and George McGurl, a teacher at Burleigh Manor Middle School in Howard County for Science, are Maryland’s latest PAEMST honorees.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the National Science Foundation (NSF) made the announcement. Established in 1983, PAEMST is the highest award kindergarten through 12th grade mathematics and science teachers can receive from the U.S. government. This year, on the award’s 35th anniversary, kindergarten through sixth grade teachers were honored.

“On behalf of the White House, I am honored to express the nation’s gratitude for the tireless dedication that these men and women bring to educating the next generation of scientists, engineers, and mathematicians,” said Michael Kratsios, Deputy Assistant to the President for Technology Policy, in a statement. “Each day, more and more jobs require a strong foundation in STEM education, so the work that you do as teachers and mentors helps ensure that all students can have access to limitless opportunities and the brightest of futures.”

Awardees represent schools in all 50 U.S. states, Department of Defense Education Activity schools and schools in the U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

During a visit to the nation’s capital, award recipients will each receive a presidential citation at an awards ceremony and participate in discussions on STEM and STEM education priorities led by federal officials. Recipients also will receive $10,000 from NSF, which manages the program on behalf of the White House.