Archdiocese of Chicago Announces Catholic School 2017 Golden Apple Award Finalists
Chicago, IL (March 2, 2017) – The Archdiocese of Chicago is proud to announce that three Catholic school personnel – a principal and two teachers – are finalists for the 2017 Golden Apple Awards. Ms. Phyllis Cavallone-Jurek, principal of St. Therese Catholic School in Chicago, is one of 10 Chicagoland finalists for the Golden Apple Stanley C. Golder Leadership Award, which honors the exemplary performance and excellence in school leadership of a principal or head of school from the Chicagoland area. Ms. Kelli Kielusiak, a teacher at St. Therese Catholic School in Chicago, and Ms. Tyra Stall, a teacher at Prince of Peace Catholic School in Lake Villa, are both finalists for the 2017 Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching. This year’s 33 finalists for the Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching were selected from a pool of more than 600 nominations, and represent 4th-8th grade teachers throughout the Chicagoland area.
“I want to congratulate Phyllis, Kelli and Tyra for their amazing contributions to Catholic education,” said Dr. Jim Rigg, Superintendent of Catholic schools. “Our students are the heart of our schools and it is through the hard work and dedication of our principals, teachers and staff that we are able to provide them with a high quality, Christ-centered education.”
Ms. Cavallone-Jurek, Ms. Kielusiak and Ms. Stall will join the other 2017 Golden Apple Chicagoland finalists for a celebration on Saturday, March 4 at the Hilton Rosemont-Chicago O’Hare. The event will be livestreamed on Golden Apple’s Facebook page, @goldenappleillinois.
The winner of the 2017 Golden Apple Stanley C. Golder Leadership Award will be selected this spring, and will receive a cash award of $10,000 to be used for his or her own professional development and a school project of the recipient’s choosing. In addition, the winner will be recognized at the Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching and Leadership annual event on May 20, 2017.
Finalists for the Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching will go through a final round of review and classroom observations prior to the selection and announcement this spring of the 10 teacher award recipients. The award recipients will each receive a tuition-free, spring quarter sabbatical to study at Northwestern University, as well as a $5,000 cash award. Additionally, the recipients will become Fellows of the Golden Apple Academy of Educators.
To learn more about the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Catholic schools, visit schools.archchicago.org.