The Northern Kentucky Education Council and the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce invite the community to attend the 2016 Excellence in Education Celebration: A Brighter Future for NKY {Powered by STEAM}.
The April 28 event will be held at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center. It will recognize students, educators, and community and business leaders for their significant contributions to education.
“Our education, business and community leaders are working together every day in creative and innovative ways to ensure all students are prepared for college, work and life,” said Polly Lusk Page, executive director of the Northern Kentucky Education Council.
“We are especially proud to be able to recognize the collective impact efforts being made on behalf of education across the region.”
This year’s theme of A Brighter Future for NKY {Powered by STEAM} was chosen to highlight the focus schools are putting on science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. Northern Kentucky students are encouraged to think critically and take integrative approaches to real-world problems, skills that will prepare them well for when they enter the workforce.
“The creativity and drive our business community is seeing from the students coming out of our local schools is inspiring,” said David Heidrich, Chair of the Board for the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. “These students are the future of our workforce, our next generation of leaders. We are excited to be able to showcase some of the unique partnerships between our schools, their students and local businesses during this year’s event.”
With an anticipated 800 people in attendance, the 2016 Excellence in Education Celebration will be the largest gathering in Northern Kentucky focused on celebrating excellence in education. The event will commence with a social hour featuring “Innovation Tables” from several school districts beginning at 5 p.m. with dinner and awards beginning at 6 p.m.
“Our goal this year was to bring more students to the event and highlight the work our schools are doing. Their projects are impressive and we’re excited to have the opportunity to showcase some of them while continuing to share the stories of students and educators with our awards,” said Page.
The following awards will be presented during the celebration:
Academic All-Stars Awards: Senior students will be recognized for excelling in a challenging course load with multiple extra-curricular and community service activities.
Career and Technical Educational All Star Award: The CTE All-Star Award recognizes Northern Kentucky high school seniors who excel in their career or technical field.
Student Leadership Awards: Senior students will be recognized for exhibiting exemplary characteristics in leadership.
Against All Odds Awards: Senior students will be recognized for overcoming great obstacles and challenges to achieve academic success.
Golden Apple Awards: Exemplary teachers will be recognized for making a significant impact on their students’ education and personal development.
A.D. Albright Awards: An educator, administrator, government representative and business leader will be recognized for making a difference by promoting educational excellence in Northern Kentucky.
One to One Literacy Award: An individual will be recognized for promoting literacy through the One to One: Practicing Reading with Students Program.
Business Engagement of the Year Award: A business will be recognized for their dedication to improving student achievement through their involvement in high impact education programs and initiatives.
Champion for Education Award: An individual will be recognized for contributing to the Northern Kentucky education community through participation, advocacy, training and resource development.
Lifetime Achievement Award: An individual will be recognized for their long-standing commitment to educational excellence in Northern Kentucky.
KET Innovative Teacher Award: An educator will be recognized for their use of KET digital instructional resources to foster student success.
Excellence in Early Childhood Education Award: A school, organization, or initiative will be recognized for contributions toward ensuring high quality early learning opportunities for children in our region.
Robert J. Storer/Toyota Business-Education Collaboration Award: An educator or administrator will be recognized for making a difference by promoting educational excellence in Northern Kentucky.
This year’s event sponsors include Title Sponsor: NKU Foundation; Platinum Sponsor: Toyota; Gold Sponsors: BB&T, PNC Bank; Silver Sponsors: Chick-fil-A, Duke Energy, E.W. Scripps Company, Gateway Community & Technical College, Thomas More College; Award Sponsors: C-Forward Information Technologies, Citi, CVG Airport, Evolution Creative Solutions, Heritage Bank, HORAN, Republic Bank, Robert Ehmet Hayes & Associates, St. Elizabeth Health Care, Turner Construction, U.S. Bank, Zalla Companies; and District Table Sponsors: Barnes Denning, Celanese, Fidelity Investments, Harper Oil Products, Inc. Loftus Plastic Surgery, Mazak Corporation, Northern Kentucky Workforce Investment Board, Rose Communications, Pomeroy.
Admission to the celebration is $50 per person, or $500 for a table of ten. Tickets can be purchased online at www.nkyec.org through April 27, 2016. For more information, please visit www.nkyec.org.