Last week, the Council of Chief State School Officers awarded Sydney Chaffee, a teacher at Codman Academy Charter Public School in Dorchester, Massachusetts, the 2017 National Teacher of the Year Award.

Chaffee who is a ninth grade humanities teacher, was the first recipient of this award to be from a charter school.

The Council of Chief State School Officers, said Chaffee “focuses on the intersection of history and literature to help her students learn from lessons of the past to make change in the world.” She also “encourages her students to take risks by creating a safe environment in her classroom for diverse learners,”

As the 2017 National Teacher of the Year, Chaffee will spend a year traveling the nation to represent educators and advocate on behalf of teachers. Chaffee looks forward to sharing her belief that educators must take risks-on their students, on each other, and on themselves – in order to create powerful authentic learning that will allow students to grow and succeed.

 

For more about the 2017 National Teacher of the Year, Sydney Chaffee visit CCSSO.org.