In 2017, and in honor of Richard Dewey, Charter School Capital created the Dewey Awards to celebrate those teachers who were able to see in a student what they perhaps couldn’t see, who saw the promise and potential of students and helped them believe that they could do anything they set their minds to.
For the third annual Richard Dewey Awards, Charter School Capital received a number of amazing, touching, inspirational submissions. Close to 75 stories about how teachers have made a difference were shared with Charter School Capital, with the caliber of submissions having made selecting the three winners a very challenging task for the panel of judges. While each selected winner was a student, the impact of victory can reach much further as the prize includes a $1,000 grant.
Connor Reiff, a sophomore at Options Charter School’s Noblesville campus, shared his story with Charter School Capital, and it resulted in social studies teacher Joshua Curry being named a 2019 Dewey Award Winner. Curry has been a member of the Options team since August 2017.
Reiff’s submission paper for the award told the story of how Curry helped keep him on a brighter path amidst a time when Reiff faced health issues that heavily impacted his ability to attend school.
In response to learning that he was named a 2019 Dewey Award Winner, Curry was both humble and grateful.
“I was happy to be recognized it such a way,” said Curry. “What it demonstrates to me is that people are paying attention to Options and the good things happening in the classrooms, whether it be parents, stakeholders and others in the community. It was very gratifying and encouraging to find out that I was selected. School teachers are always looking for more sources of funding to deepen lessons and improve our classrooms. It was a pleasure to be selected and it was a deep surprise. The gratification will go a long way.”
About Options Schools
As free, public charter schools, Options Schools are designed to support the academic and social needs of students who haven’t found success in the traditional public school environment. At Options, students are encouraged to explore and embrace their individuality in a caring, supportive and inclusive environment.
Through small class sizes and an individualized academic approach, the outstanding and highly trained instructors and staff of Options propel students to achieving academic success both in high school and their future endeavors.
About Charter School Capital
Since the company’s inception in 2006, Charter School Capital (CSC) has been committed to the success of charter schools. CSC helps schools access, leverage, and sustain the resources charter schools need to thrive, allowing them to focus on what matters most – educating students. CSC’s depth of experience working with charter school leaders and its knowledge of how to address charter school financial and operational needs have allowed the organization to provide over $2 billion in support of 600 charter schools that have educated over 1,027,000 students across the country.