The Golden Apple Foundation Surprises Wheaton Warrenville South High School Teacher Philip Culcasi with Prestigious Award for Excellence in Teaching

CHICAGO (May 6th, 2022) - The Golden Apple Foundation, the leading Illinois-based nonprofit committed to preparing, honoring and supporting great educators who advance educational opportunities for students, today surprised Philip Culcasi, a 9th and 10th grade teacher at Wheaton Warrenville South High School in Wheaton, with the prestigious Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Teaching. Culcasi is one of 10 teacher award recipients in Illinois. 

Following a highly competitive process, the 2022 teaching award recipients were selected from more than 400 nominations of 9th-12th grade teachers. 

“We are honored to celebrate our 2022 award recipients and their many contributions both inside and outside of their schools. We know that their impact doesn’t stop at their classroom doors. These amazing teachers positively influence thousands over their lifetimes by shaping the lives of students, schools, and communities,” said The Golden Apple Foundation President Alan Mather. “They are truly inspirational, and we look forward to their continued commitment to the next generation of teachers as they support our two teacher preparation programs - the Golden Apple Scholars and Accelerators programs.”

The Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching honor outstanding teachers for having lasting, positive effects on students’ lives and school communities. Teacher recipients demonstrate – in their teaching and results – significant, positive impact on their students’ growth and learning. 

About Philip Culcasi
Throughout his many decades of effective instruction, Culcasi’s chemistry classroom has often been described as “a masterclass in learning and instruction.” Under Culcasi, students are always greeted enthusiastically and emphatically at the door each day, and instruction is given through modeling, exploration, discovery, celebration and even calculated risk-taking. Students are guided toward discovery and are celebrated upon gleaning important insights. 

For example, a classroom was recently guided toward the discovery that there is no such thing as different types of energy — instead, there are simply different ways to store and transfer that energy. By gradually easing students into the concept of energy throughout previous courses and instruction, Culcasi was able to then reintroduce the notion of energy and introduce it in the context of chemical reactions. The end result was that students were able to build on previous knowledge and gain a better understanding of new fields of knowledge yet to come. One particular student was so moved by Culcasi’s instruction that they proceeded to change their career trajectory into a science-related field, and after doing so won the National Science Fellowship. In honor of his extraordinary teaching success, in July 2019, at the American Modeling Teachers Association (ATMA) annual meeting at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Culcasi became the recipient of the David Hestenes Award for contributions to modeling instruction and science education. 

Each award recipient receives a $5,000 cash award and a spring sabbatical provided by Northwestern University at no cost. Award recipients also become Fellows of the Golden Apple Academy of Educators, a community of educators who play an important role in preparing the next generation of teachers in the Golden Apple Scholars and Accelerators programs - which are dedicated to addressing the teacher shortage in Illinois.

The nomination period for the 2023 Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching & Leadership is open. All are invited to nominate exceptional 4th-8th grade teachers and Pre-K-12th grade school leaders in Illinois at www.goldenapple.org/awards. 

Golden Apple’s social media channels will feature surprises for each of the Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Teaching & Leadership recipients. Follow the news here: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn.  

About The Golden Apple Foundation
The Golden Apple Foundation’s mission is to inspire, develop and support teacher and school leader excellence, especially in schools-of-need. Our leading-edge preparation delivers exceptional teachers who make an impact. We help students thrive in the classroom and in life. Since our beginning, we have recognized master educators annually; and, these master educators help prepare the next generation of teachers through both our Golden Apple Scholars (for undergraduates) and Golden Apple Accelerators (for career-changers) programs. Our vision is one in which every classroom has a great teacher and to realize this, we are committed to making a material difference in resolving the teacher shortage. Visit http://www.goldenapple.org for more information.

Media contact:

John Arango
(847)754-1325
johna@theharbingergroup.com