Being honored with the Presidential Award is truly a humbling experience. To win this award requires excellence in many areas of the science classroom and the only way to achieve that high standard is hard work and dedication year after year. Our students deserve teachers who work every day toward excellence and this award not only reflects on my commitment, but also on the students, school administration, and district support that have helped me strive to continue to grow as a science teacher.

James Evans Sterlington, LA | K-6, Science, 2020

The official biography below was current at the time of the award.

James "Robbie" Evans has been an educator for the last 10 years. He has spent his entire career at his alma mater, Sterlington Middle School. During that time, he has always taught science, but periodically taught English-Language Arts and social studies. He currently teaches sixth grade science and serves as the school's science department head. Before following in his family's footsteps in education and giving in to the desire to teach, Robbie was a journalist for two decades. Project-based learning has been the key to keeping Robbie's students engaged in science. A typical day for students in his classes centers on phenomenon-based collaborative group work, modelling, and hands-on activities. He also has designed his instruction to include a multitude of digital platforms students can use in their scientific investigations. Robbie's ability to communicate through writing has helped him teach writing skills to his science students. He serves in the Ouachita Parish School Systems Literacy Design Collaborative (LDC) cohort, a districtwide initiative to improve the reading and writing skills of students. As part of the LDC team, Robbie has developed and delivered presentations on literacy design to school faculty and teachers across the school system during district in-services and also has created exemplary science literacy modules available to all sixth grade science teachers across the district. He was the 2017 Sterlington Middle School Teacher of the Year and is a teacher representative on his school's Leadership Team. Robbie earned a B.A. in journalism from the University of Louisiana at Monroe and an M.A.T. from Louisiana Tech University. He is certified in middle school science, middle school English-Language Arts, and high school physical science.

Know a great teacher like James Evans? Nominate them for PAEMST!