Lennard High School math teacher Kelly Zunkiewicz was awarded the Fishman Prize for Superlative Classroom Practice.
The Lennard High School math teacher who was profiled in last week’s edition of The Observer News, The SCC Observer and The Current, has received a prestigious national award. The $25,000 Fishman Prize for Superlative Classroom Practice was awarded to math teacher Kelly Zunkiewicz, one of more than 800 teachers nationally who applied for the honor. She was one of only four in the nation to receive this award this year.
The Fishman Prize is an annual award for inspiring teachers working in high-poverty public schools. Zunkiewicz teaches Advanced Placement Calculus and Pre-Calculus Honors, as well as serving as a math coach. She developed a successful calculus program and holds her students to high expectations. In her AP Calculus class, the exam pass rate increased from 11 percent to 80 percent since she started at Lennard High School. More recently, her students earned a 93 percent average on their first semester exam, surpassing all 26 high schools in Hillsborough County.
In addition to receiving $25,000 each, Fishman Prize winners participate in a six-week summer residency at The New Teacher Project during which they will meet with leaders in education, engage in helping more teachers improve their classroom practice, and collaborate on a short paper that captures their insights and knowledge.