Indian Hill High School congratulates Project Lead The Way (PLTW) educator Myrtis Smith for earning the national recognition of PLTW Outstanding Teacher of the Year for 2021-2022. Smith was one of only 79 PLTW teachers across the U.S. to be recognized.
“This recognition is truly an honor,” said Indian Hill High School PLTW Teacher Myrtis Smith. “It is a tribute to all of my past and current students. Exploring the world of engineering with these bright, talented, and curious young adults is an adventure. They push me to be better. They challenge me to do more.”
Smith leads Indian Hill High School’s nationally recognized science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) program, in partnership with Great Oaks. Project Lead The Way has recognized Indian Hill High School two consecutive years as a “PLTW Distinguished School” for STEM learning. Indian Hill High School was one of only 204 high school programs nationally to receive this distinction for the 2020-2021 school year.
“Myrtis Smith brings excellence and opportunity to our program,” said Indian Hill High School Principal Jeff Damadeo. “Many of our students begin our comprehensive engineering studies their freshman year and continue to learn and grow under her direction all four years of high school. We are grateful for the dedication and love of learning Ms. Smith inspires within our students.”
According to PLTW, Smith’s selection as an Outstanding Teacher of the Year was based on her ability to develop creative, engaging, and inspiring ways to connect students with meaningful learning experiences.
“I stood outside of our high school in the spring of 2021 with Ms. Smith and watched as her students launched rockets one by one that they had engineered under her instruction,” said Indian Hill Superintendent Kirk Koennecke. “What I witnessed was excitement, both from our students and Ms. Smith, at seeing a project go from concept to launch – it was amazing. This type of experience is what we want for all of our students, and we applaud Ms. Smith for this much deserved national recognition.”
Photo caption: Indian Hill Superintendent Kirk Koennecke with Indian Hill High School Project Lead The Way Outstanding Teacher of the Year Myrtis Smith