TMA continues to receive an outstanding number of nominations and applications for this program. The 2013 Ernest and Sarah Butler Awards for Excellence in Science Teaching received over 545 nominations and 255 applications. 

Please nominate an Outstanding Science Teacher for the 2014 TMA Ernest and Sarah Butler Awards for Excellence in Science Teaching. It's never too early to start thinking about this.

TMA encourages you to nominate exceptional science teachers for the 2013-14 school year.  Nominate more than one if you feel strongly about several teachers.  Self-nominations are also accepted and encouraged.

Let’s reward teachers who exhibit a personal commitment and enthusiasm for teaching any area of science!  Three Texas science teachers will receive $5,000 each!  Their schools will receive a $2,000 award!  Three additional science departments will receive $500 each for our second-place winners!

Nominations for this award are open through Oct. 19, 2013. Nominate someone today (PDF)! You can also nominate a teacher online.

Eligibility requirements include the following:

       * Texas state-certified, full-time public and private school science teachers with a minimum of two years’ classroom experience.
       * Teachers must be returning to teach in a Texas classroom during the 2014-15 school year.

Requirements of the application include:

        *  Completed application
        *  Educational History and Professional Development
        *  Letters of Support (3) - Supervisor, Colleague, and Student or Parent
        *  Professional Question Essays (2) - Professional Biography and Philosophy of Teaching
        *  Portfolio

TMA will contact all nominees, who then must complete and submit an application by Dec. 28, 2013. 

 Congratulations to the 2013 Winners! 

 The Texas Medical Association (TMA) awarded six Texas science teachers with the 2013 TMA Ernest and Sarah Butler Awards for Excellence in Science Teaching. First-place prizes were awarded today to elementary, middle, and high school teachers at the association’s annual conference in San Antonio. These educators help create tomorrow’s physicians by inspiring students in the field of science.

Martha McLeod of Fulton 4-5 Learning Center in Rockport, Mary Jean Tykoski of Cooper Junior High School in Wylie, and Jodie Deinhammer of Coppell High School in Coppell are this year’s elementary, middle, and high school winners in the competition (see winner bios below). TMA awards each recipient a $5,000 cash prize, and their school receives a $2,000 resource grant towards its science programs. 

Second-place winners are Liberty Heise of The Girls’ School of Austin in Austin, Dana Clark of Irma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School in Dallas, and Anna Loonam of Bellaire High School in Bellaire. Schools of the second-place winners’ receive a $500 resource grant to enhance science classroom learning.

According to the National Science Foundation’s Science and Engineering Indicators 2012 report, only 29 percent of Texas eighth-graders and 29 percent of fourth-graders have achieved proficiency in science. The TMA Ernest and Sarah Butler Awards for Excellence in Science Teaching can help improve these numbers by recognizing innovative teachers and providing them resources to continue motivating students.

Applicants went through a two-stage evaluation process. First, finalists were determined by a 12-member team of science professionals from The University of Texas Charles A. Dana Center who volunteered their time and curriculum expertise to the program. The second stage of judging was conducted by a panel of physicians serving on the TMA Educational Scholarship, Loan, and Awards Committee. 

The TMA Ernest and Sarah Butler Awards for Excellence in Science Teaching are supported by the TMA Foundation, the philanthropic arm of TMA, thanks to an endowment established by Dr. and Mrs. Ernest C. Butler of Austin; Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, which has generously supported this program for nine years; Dr. Gerard and Mrs. Carrie Ventura of Nacogdoches, who have supported the program for two years; and the Potter Randall County Medical Society in Amarillo.