Washington DC- Al Rabanera, a math educator at La Vista High School in Fullerton, California, is one of 43 public educators who will receive the prestigious California Casualty Award for Teaching Excellence at the NEA Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education Gala next February in Washington DC.

The California Casualty Awards for Teaching Excellence are unique: besides being recognized for excellence in instructional and professional practice, awardees are nominated by their peers – their National Education Association state affiliate – for their dedication to the profession, community engagement, professional development, attention to diversity, and advocacy for fellow educators.

Because the NEA Foundation values both professional development and diversity, awardees are invited to participate in its Global Learning Fellowship. Fellows learn how to prepare their students for a connected and multicultural world in this comprehensive, year-long professional development program, which includes an international field study next June.

Rabanera is a member of the California Teachers Association Instructional Leadership Corps (CTA-ILC) that supports innovative educational approaches in coordination with partner Stanford University. Among the program’s core operating principles is that professional educators know best what works in the classrooms and what works best to reach all students.

  “These outstanding educators are innovators, challengers, and global thinkers,” says Harriet Sanford, NEA Foundation President and CEO. “We are delighted that California Casualty joins us once again in expressing our shared admiration and thanks for their work.”

“The California Casualty awardees are the architects of our nation’s future,” says Beau Brown, California Casualty CEO. “We are thrilled for the opportunity to honor them with the California Casualty Awards for Teaching Excellence.”