Lessons Learned

LESSONS LEARNED The Milken Educator Award Goes To …

By Drew Gieseke Photos courtesy of Milken Family Foundation

Ashley Gerald never expected her name to be called.

The educator at Lusher Elementary School in Florissant was surprised during a special assembly in late April when it was announced that she’d been awarded a $25,000 Milken Educator Award for her leadership within the school and around her community.

“When I realized they were giving an award, I started thinking of all of the awesome teachers I work with – I never considered myself,” says Gerald, who taught first grade for five years at the school and now serves as a behavior interventionist there. “When I realized that my name was called, I was filled with joy and disbelief. I broke down in tears because I knew it would help me to continue to provide for myself and my son.”

Gerald is an alumna of Lindenwood University and the Hazelwood School District, which now includes Lusher. In October 2017, she founded the Lusher Families program, which pairs teachers or staff members with students at the school to help the students develop social and emotional health and well-being.

Gerald’s principal at the time of the program’s founding, Julie Melton, approached the educator, saying that Lusher needed a program that not only taught and reinforced school rules but also fostered meaningful relationships between staff and students. With room to be creative, Gerald worked with her colleagues to bring her ideas to life. Within the program, “families” refer to the small groups of Lusher mentors and students.

“From teacher and student feedback, we learned they wanted more time with their families, so we added a half-day with families in January,” Gerald says. “We used this time to review schoolwide expectations and set goals for the second quarter. Families ate lunch together that day, too.”

The program was a hit. Students would stop Gerald in the hallway to ask when they could have “Family Day” again. Parents shared with teachers that their kids came home excited about the fun activities – music to any educator’s ears.

But Gerald’s passion for her students and her school aren’t rooted in winning awards. From helping struggling families during the COVID-19 pandemic to launching a new program – The Lusher Leadership Academy, which will teach and reward students for demonstrating leadership traits – Gerald’s thoughts always return to her pupils.

“You have to take time to build meaningful connections with our students,” she says. “Get to know them beyond the curriculum. Take time to build them up and listen to them. We don’t know what they have to encounter as they step out of the school building. They need us for more than academics.”

Dubbed the “Oscars of Teaching,” the Milken Educator Awards from the Milken Family Foundation provide “unrestricted awards” to “classroom heroes, serving at once as validation, motivation and inspiration,” according to the foundation’s website. Gerald says she’s using the award money to achieve a longtime goal: homeownership. Prior to the surprise, she was actively searching to buy a home for herself and her son. The Milken funds helped bring that dream to a reality, as she officially closed on a house in late May. ln Milken Family Foundation, 1250 Fourth St., Santa Monica, California, 310-570-4785, milkeneducatorawards.org