North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper announced in late January that Westover High School Science teacher, Dr. Julia Little was one of five educators awarded this year’s Governor Educator Discovery Award. 

The award is a stipend of up to $1,000 awarded to Pre-K traditional public and public charter school teachers. Little is one of five teachers  across the state receiving funding to pursue a professional development experience of their choosing.  

Little will be traveling to Iowa State University for the Research Experience for Teachers program in Summer 2023. The RET program is a National Science Foundation opportunity to provide teachers with research experiences and allow them to create ongoing relationships with career scientists. Through this program, teachers engage in 35 hours a week of research in a variety of STEM topics and leave the program with a thought-out lesson plan that translates the learning they did into viable activities for use in the classroom.

“I became a lateral entry teacher later in life to encourage students to go into STEM fields, and I really enjoy teaching my science subjects,” shared Little. 

Teachers had to submit a proposal with details about their teaching experience, the professional development activity they wish to pursue, and how it would enhance their efforts to create work-based learning activities for their students. These applications then go through a rigorous review process and are narrowed down to our outstanding winners.

“Our teachers work hard to nurture our students, and it’s important that we support their professional development,” Governor Cooper said in a press release. “This funding will help educators learn new skills to bring back to the classroom that will help students prepare for the jobs of the future.”

This was the ninth cycle of teachers to receive the award since its inception in 2019. With a growing interest shown in the program each cycle, the program has been able to expand, bringing the total number of grants awarded to twenty-nine. The next cycle of the Governor’s Educator Discovery Award opened on Jan. 30th, 2023.