Teaching is hard work and it takes a significant commitment to get good at it, let alone to be excellent at it. The best teachers are constantly reflecting, adapting, and changing their practice and looking for ways to grow. That’s one of the things that is so appealing about this award process – it’s been an amazing way to reflect on my practice and keep reaching towards excellence in mathematics teaching.

Ella Hereth Indianapolis, IN | 7-12, Mathematics, 2023

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

Ella Hereth has taught middle school and high school mathematics in Indianapolis for 13 years. She has worked at John Marshall High School and Harshman Middle School in Indianapolis Public Schools as well as Guion Creek Middle School and Lawrence North High School. Ella currently teaches mathematics to eighth graders at Harshman Middle School in Indianapolis Public Schools. In the 2024-2025 school year, she will serve as Harshman’s High Ability Math Instructional Coach. Ella is passionate about getting students up, moving, and thinking in her classroom. Students are more likely to be standing at a vertical white board and collaborating with peers than sitting in their seats. She enjoys hearing, watching, and listening to students struggle productively with mathematics tasks. Ella has helped transform the school’s culture to one of more collaboration, movement, and engagement. She has shared this work with teachers across the state through presentations at various conferences, podcasts, and blog posts. Ella has a B.A. in gender studies from the University of Chicago and an M.A.T. from Marian University. She is Nationally Board Certified in early adolescent mathematics and is certified by the state to teach mathematics in grades 5-12 and English as a new language in grades K-12. She is also a certified elementary mathematics specialist.

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