Ready for a celebration in honor of local K-12 teachers, students, and education administrators? On September 23, 2021, the Classroom of the Future Foundation (CFF) will hold its 18th Annual Innovation in Education Awards at SeaWorld San Diego. This event brings together educators and business leaders to highlight champions of educational innovation in the community, as well as exceptional students pursuing careers in STEM education.
2021 CLASS OF AWARDEES
At the event, CFF features specific school programs with prestigious “Innovation in Education Awards,” a recognition that honors our four classroom grantees from San Diego County. These are all programs that motivate K-12 students about learning and increasing student achievement. Educators apply for Innovation Grants through an online request for application process, and an application review panel consisting of leaders in the business and education communities meet to select winners in the following four award categories:
- Achieve Award ($5,000 grant): This award showcases an innovative program that is able to quantify program results or achievements that drive student learning. It specifically focuses on the “program evidence” that directly correlates to positive student outcomes.
- Innovate Award ($5,000 grant): This award showcases the creative innovations of a program that facilitates enhanced teaching and learning. This award specifically focuses on the uniqueness of the “program actions” that promotes teacher innovation, increases student interest and drives performance and/or achievement.
- Inspire Award ($5,000 grant): This award is given to the program that inspires, excites, motivates, sparks and/or influences teachers to teach and students to learn through exceptional, unprecedented or extraordinary programs.
- Impact Award ($10,000 grant): This award is the most prestigious award given to the ONE program that embodies the first three attributes—inspire, innovate, and achieve—which culminate to realize the fourth—IMPACT on teachers, students and your community. This program exceeds all others in its ability to impact students and teachers through inspiring, innovative, exceptional, unprecedented and/or extraordinary program components that are verified by quantitative and sustained results. Additionally, this program substantiates its sustainability and can be replicated by others.
In addition to the Innovation in Education Awards, CFF recognizes a group of educators with “Special Awards” for the extraordinary impact that they each have made on the learning environment in San Diego County, as part of CFF’s Innovative Educator program. Special Award winners are selected by the CFF Board of Directors.
Lastly, CFF recognizes the achievement of exceptional students in the AVID program by rewarding their accomplishments with High Tech Academic Achievement Scholarships to pursue a STEM degree. About 75% of AVID students are from a low socioeconomic status background, and 80% are underrepresented students. Regardless of their life circumstances, AVID students overcome obstacles and achieve success. CFF and our sponsors are proud to honor them!
Our 2021 Class of Awardees exemplify the mission of CFF and are truly making a difference in the lives of students. We invite you to review the award winners below and congratulate them on social media using our hashtag #CFFSD.
MEET THE INNOVATION IN EDUCATION AWARDEES
IMPACT AWARD
School District: Poway Unified School District
School or Charter: Adobe Bluffs Elementary School (ABES)
Program Name: Adobe Bluff’s Mandarin Programs
Program Description: Adobe Bluffs Elementary School (ABES) cultivates global learners by immersing all students with Chinese culture and providing two ways to learn the Mandarin language. Students engage in the Two-Way Dual Language Chinese Mandarin Immersion Program or the school’s Foreign Language in Elementary School (FLES) program. Through local and international cultural partnerships and innovative teaching practices, ABES students flourish in a diverse community built around cultural awareness and inclusivity.
ACHIEVE AWARD
School District: Poway Unified School District
Program Name: CyberAegis Team
Program Description: Inspire students to pursue a career in cybersecurity to secure our nation. Train students to compete in and win county, state, and national cybersecurity competitions. Show students how leadership, teamwork, grit, and determination can be used to achieve goals in life.
INNOVATE AWARD
School District: Grossmont Union High School District
Program Name: GUHSD Growing Readers through Gamification Summer Reading Program
Program Description: Amid Spring 2020’s pandemic conditions, GUHSD Teacher Librarians collaborated to create a completely online, gamified, interactive summer reading program open up to all students, teachers, and staff members across our district. At a time when people were physically disconnected and everything was so uncertain, they found a way to build community around literacy and learning in a fun, creative, and wholly new way. Participation was voluntary, during a break, and still people chose to join in.
INSPIRE AWARD
School District: San Diego County Office of Education
School or Charter: Juvenile Court and Community Schools
Program Name: Creating our Future Design Jam
Program Description: Our 2nd Creating Our Future Design Jam was the culminating event of a cross-curricular collaboration that guided our students in exploring various topics through the lens of equity. The project included two film festivals of documentaries on environmental justice initiatives to serve as inspiration for our students’ own projects. The design jam was a virtual exhibition to showcase student innovation and critical thinking around a real world problem and ideas for change.
EVENT INFORMATION
DATE: Thursday, September 23, 2021
TIME: 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm PT
LOCATION: SeaWorld San Diego, 500 Sea World Drive, San Diego, CA 92109
SAFETY: This event is exclusive with a limited number of attendees due to COVID-19 CDC guidelines. CDC guidelines will be followed. We will continue to update our website as we get closer to the event. We expect that masks may be worn during the event and social distancing may take place. We encourage you to become vaccinated.
TICKETS: Purchase tickets on Eventbrite. General Admission: $150. Educators: $50. (fees not included) Tickets are required so please register early to secure your reservation.
PARKING: Free at SeaWorld
AGENDA (All times Pacific Time):
4:00 pm – Registration & Welcome Reception
6:00 pm – Program with Scholarship Awards, Innovation in Education Awards, Special Awards
7:30 pm – Dessert Reception
SPONSORSHIP PACKAGES: Please contact Jane Schlosberg (jane@classroomofthefuture.org) for details of our different sponsorship packages loaded with benefits!