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Austin Public School’s Joee Winter, Chris

, and Emily Hovland have been nominated for the 2023-2024 STEM Forward Outstanding Educator Award.

STEM Forward is a collaborative group of southeast Minnesota K-12 school districts, post-secondary partners, and community businesses IBM, Mayo Clinic, The Hormel Institute, and Workforce Development, Inc, who work together to promote STEM excellence in our K-12 schools.

 “Being nominated for an award like this is an honor for our school and the STEM work and learning we all are embracing,” said Gogolewski, an IJ Holton Intermediate School Project Lead the Way teacher. “STEM allows students to think freely in their world and come to a learning that fits their personality as well as the world they know and live in.”

This year, nine southeast Minnesota educators were nominated for the award, which means one third of those nominated are from Austin.

 “STEM is the future in almost every career path a student will take after high school,” Winter said, who is a math and computer science teacher at AHS. “Learning STEM will allow [my students] to excel in any area they choose to focus on in the future.”

The STEM Forward Outstanding Educator Award “recognizes K-12 professionals who strive toward the highest levels of excellence … with a focus on initiative and continuous improvement in every aspect of their work.”

 “I am incredibly fortunate to work with the students at Austin High School and getting to see them grow and reach new goals is one of the best parts of my job,” said Hovland, a high school Packer Profile coordinator. “STEM education allows students to explore areas of interest, develop skills that will support them in their future endeavors, and allows them to engage in hands-on learning that is engaging and enriches their learning.”

The 2024 Outstanding Educator will be celebrated at the annual STEM Forward Gathering on Feb. 21. This event will also be live-streamed on Facebook via Southeast Service Cooperative.