Applications Now Open For Innovative Educators

  • Wednesday, August 21, 2019

The Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce and Chattanooga 2.0 invite Chattanooga region educators to apply for the 2019 Education Innovator Award recognizing creativity and innovation in Hamilton County classrooms.

The two organizations present the 2019 Education Innovator Award as part of the Chattanooga Chamber’s Spirit of Innovation Awards Oct.

23 at The Signal.  The Education Innovator Award honors and celebrates local innovation in education that moves Chattanooga-Hamilton County towards being the smartest community in the South.

“Innovative educators increase student engagement and ultimately shape the creative thinkers and future leaders of our nation,” said Molly Blankenship, Executive Director, Chattanooga 2.0. “This award recognizes creative teaching practices and unique innovations in the classroom which develop in students the problem-solving and critical thinking skills that employers highly desire.”

Chris Seanard and Arielle Hayes, Dalewood Middle School, received the inaugural award in 2018 for the utilization of the Dalewood VW eLabs as both an academic digital fabrication space and a student-run business center. Through this multi-use model, students applied academic core content while learning problem-solving, collaboration and leadership skills.

Award application deadline is Sept. 6. Educators can apply on Chattanooga 2.0’s website chatt2.org/educationinnovatoraward.

Chattanooga 2.0 Innovation Action Team members will judge applications based on the criteria of creativity, impact, execution, inspiration and potential to scale.

Eligibility Requirements

– Though judges will recognize the people behind the Innovation, the application focuses on a specific innovation, rather than the person. The Innovation must be a thing, whether that’s a physical product, curriculum, website, app, approach, strategy, etc.

– The innovation must have been implemented in Chattanooga/Hamilton County within the past 3 years

– The innovation must be new to Hamilton County

– The innovation must be implemented in a PK-12 school or classroom in Hamilton County

– All schools within the county are eligible (public, private, charter, magnet)

– The primary applicant must be employed by a school or the public school district

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