Goals of the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Awards program include honoring and rewarding outstanding K-12 educators for the quality of their teaching, their professional leadership, their engagement with families and the community, and their potential for even greater contributions to the healthy development of children. Goals also include focusing public attention on the importance of excellent educators and encouraging able, caring and creative people to choose the challenge, service and adventure of teaching as a career.
Based on guidelines established by the Foundation, participating states' departments of education appoint blue-ribbon committees that recommend candidates for selection. Identification and selection procedures are confidential, and the program does not include a formal nomination or application procedure.
Taylor Thai teaches English to multilingual students and collaborates with her colleagues to make lessons in other subjects accessible to all students whose first language is not English. She works hard to help families connect with the school and their child's learning, and her fluency in Vietnamese has made her a strong resource for the school's Vietnamese community.
During remote learning, Mrs. Thai assembled and delivered packets for each of her students, adopted new technology quickly, and helped her colleagues learn new tools. Beyond the classroom, Mrs. Thai has served as an InSPIRED Fellow and a member of DESE's Teacher Advisory Cabinet.
Mrs. Thai received a bachelor's degree in legal studies from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2006 and a master's degree in elementary education from Lesley University in 2011. She has worked at Donovan Elementary since 2013 and has been a teacher for 12 years.
Taylor Thai Kindergarten and First Grade Teacher of Multilingual Students Donovan Elementary School Randolph Public Schools
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Last Updated: June 8, 2022
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