2009 HISTORY TEACHER OF THE YEAR AWARD 
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History 

The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History announces the sixth annual History Teacher of the Year Award, which honors outstanding teachers of American history across the country. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, founded in 1994, promotes the study and love of American history. The Institute is renowned for its scholarly seminars for K12 teachers and National Park Service interpreters. In 2009, the Institute will offer 40 seminars for nearly 1,200 teachers at institutions throughout the United States and Great Britain. For more information on the seminars, please visit www.gilderlehrman.org.

The History Teacher of the Year Award recognizes outstanding American history teachers from elementary school through high school, and the crucial importance of American history education. Finalists are selected from each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Department of Defense schools, and U.S. territories. From these local winners, a national honoree is recognized as the National History Teacher of the Year. 

Winners will be chosen based on several criteria. 

Qualifying Criteria 
•	At least three years of classroom experience in teaching American history in an elementary school. 
•	A deep career commitment to teaching American history, which includes local and state history. 
•	Evidence of creativity and imagination in the classroom that addresses literacy and content beyond state standards. 
•	Close attention to primary documents, artifacts, historic sites, and other primary materials of history, including oral history. 
•	Evidence of thoughtful assessment of student achievement. 

Eligibility 
•	Any fulltime elementary school teacher who teaches American history (including local and state history) as his or her primary subject or as one of the subjects he/she is responsible for in the classroom may be nominated. 
•	Any fulltime elementary school teacher who focuses on American history within the framework of his/her school program may be nominated.

Procedure 

First Round: Nominations 
Submit the following: 

•	The nominee’s resume. 
•	A full letter of nomination that addresses the award criteria and includes quantitative measures of student achievement. Nominations can be made by a department or division head, a school director, social studies director, principal, or superintendent. Nominations from friends, family, and students will also be accepted. 
•	A letter of support from a colleague, immediate supervisor, or education professional familiar with the nominee’s work. 

Second Round: Additional Materials for Consideration 
From this pool of nominations, the state coordinators will select up to five finalists who will be asked to submit additional materials that include the following: 
•	A one-page statement of the nominee’s philosophy of teaching American history. 
•	A sample lesson plan, no longer than three pages. Primary document attachments are not included in the page limitation. 
•	A sample extended project assigned to students, demonstrating use of primary documents, artifacts, historic sites, etc. Nominees can include up to ten pages of student work in this category.
•	An 8-10 minute video, which is not a class session, but a segment during which the nominee demonstrates class projects and discusses his or her most effective teaching practices, including how student achievement is assessed. Students are not present in the video. A sample of a video submission can be viewed online at
http://www.gilderlehrman.org/teachers/student8.html.

A complete application for the History Teacher of the Year Award will include all materials from both the first and second round of the state award process. 

Please submit an original and three copies of all materials.

Deadline 
Nomination deadlines may vary from state to state. Please contact your state coordinator for information. 

Awards 
State winners will be announced and honored at local ceremonies. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History honors each state winner with an award of $1,000. The Institute also presents the winner’s school with an archive of primary historical materials, named in honor of that teacher, for use in the school library or resource center. Winners are selected in each state by panels of distinguished history educators under the supervision of the Gilder Lehrman Institute. State winners entering on the national level should submit their application in its original format. 

The National History Teacher of the Year is selected from the 50+ state winners, (including the District of Columbia, Department of Defense and U.S. territories) by a panel of prominent historians. The 2009 national winner will be honored in a fall ceremony in New York City. The winner, together with the nominating supervisor, will travel to the national recognition ceremony with expenses paid by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.
 
Submitting Nominations 
Additional guidelines and information can be found at www.gilderlehrman.org.

Any questions about eligibility or procedures should be addressed to the national award coordinator: 

HTOY Coordinator 
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History 
19 West 44th Street, Suite 500 
New York, NY 10036 
Phone: (646) 3669666 
E-mail: htoy@gilderlehrman.org