Awards

Edwyna Wheadon Postgraduate Training Scholarship

2023 Scholarship Recipient

Amy Bouch is an 8th-grade English teacher at Chartiers Valley Middle School near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She is the 2022 Grammar Teacher of the Year, the President of the Western Pennsylvania Council of Teachers of English (WPCTE), and a teacher-leader for the Western Pennsylvania Writing Project (WPWP). She also served on the NCTE Middle Level Section Nominating Committee this past year. Amy’s favorite parts of teaching include getting over-the-top excited when pairing students with books they’ll love, empowering students to share their writing with wider audiences, and inspiring students to find the magic and power in grammar. To further her passion and outreach to best support students and teachers, Amy is pursuing her PhD in curriculum and instruction at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP).

Award Details

Nomination Deadline:  January 31

Purpose:
To provide funding for professional development experiences for English/Language Arts teachers working in public educational institutions. The scholarship supports postgraduate training to enhance teaching skills and/or career development in teaching.

Eligibility:
Applicants are required to be teachers of English/Language Arts in a publicly funded institution. At the time of the award, the recipient must also be a member of NCTE.

Criteria:
Applicants must complete the Application Form below. It includes a written statement of no more than 500 words indicating:

• The professional development experience for which you seek support and include specific details such as course titles, planned dates of study, fees, etc.
• Why you feel that you should be considered for this scholarship and how it will serve you in your career.

Scholarship Specifics:
A $500 scholarship is awarded once each year. On behalf of the recipient, scholarship payments are issued directly to any of the following: accredited, degree-granting public and private two-year junior and community colleges, four-year colleges and universities, and graduate and professional schools. Scholarship payments may be used toward degree or non-degree courses.

Applicants will be informed of the committee’s decision by March 15, so that the awardee can benefit from proposed activities during the following semester.

Edwyna Wheadon was a long-time member of NCTE and was active in the Houston Council of Teachers of English affiliate. During her lifetime, Ms. Wheadon established a scholarship program for teachers in the Houston area who desired to continue their professional development. Upon her passing in 2002, Ms. Wheadon’s family established the Edwyna Wheadon Postgraduate Training Scholarship Fund at NCTE to honor her enduring passion for supporting the career-long education of classroom teachers. The Scholarship Fund is a memorial to her vision, ideas, and work.

Questions about the scholarship can be emailed to NCTEAwards@ncte.org.