IDOE Announces Milken Educator Award Winner
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe Indiana Department of Education has presented the Milken Educator Award to Traci Druschke. She is a teacher at Oak Hill Elementary School in the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation. The award is provided through the Milken Family Foundation and along with national recognition, includes a $25,000 cash prize. Druschke currently serves as a third grade educator and has taught at the elementary level for the past 13 years. Considered by her peers as a teacher-leader, she is one of two Oak Hill teachers leading her class along the Whole Brain Teaching method, created by founder and California educator Chris Biffle. Through her teaching, Druschke creates an environment where her students clearly understand their educational expectations and complete third grade with a mastery of the skills and lessons taught. In addition to being a Milken Educator, she is a former recipient of the First Year Teacher of the Year Award and has been selected for the EVSC Learning Leadership Cadre for two consecutive years. Druschke received a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from the University of Southern Indiana, and a Masters of Education from Indiana Wesleyan.
Established by the Milken Family Foundation to attract, retain, and motivate outstanding talent to the teaching profession, the Milken Educator Awards is the nation’s preeminent teacher recognition program. For 30 years, the Milken Family Foundation has provided more than $138 million in funding to the Milken Educator Awards, including $68 million in individual awards to more than 2,700 recipients. Additionally, the Milken Family Foundation provides for professional development opportunities and networking with leading education stakeholders. Since 1993, more than 60 Indiana educators have received the Milken Educator Award.