INDIANAPOLIS -- Indianapolis Public Schools has announced its 2017 Teacher of the Year.
The award went to Micah Nelson, who teaches 6th-8th grade social studies at Center for Inquiry School 2.
Nelson became inspired to become a teacher after Sept. 11, 2001, when she was a college student.
"In the discussions that occurred after that event, I realized that many soon-to-be college graduates did not have the slightest understanding of world events," Nelson said in an IPS release. "I felt like the education system had failed them. Here were students at a well-respected university who had never been pushed to think critically about world events, and had an overly-simplistic view of complicated issues and histories. At that point, I added an education degree to my history degree, and have been trying to inspire an interest in world events in my students ever since."
Nelson joined IPS in 2004 after graduating from Purdue University with degrees in history and education.
She also has a master's degree in teacher leadership from Butler University. She is also a teacher in Butler's College of Education.
The selection process consisted of each principal nominating one teacher. The selection committee then reviewed each nominee's portfolio to determine the winner.
