Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST)

This prestigious national awards program is intended to increase status and rewards for demonstrated professionalism, including leadership, in the areas of mathematics and science teaching so that individuals of high quality will be encouraged to enter and remain in the field of teaching.

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The National Science Foundation (NSF) administers the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching (PAEMST) for the White House, which began the program in 1983 to improve teaching in mathematics and the sciences. Elementary-level teachers have been included in the program since 1990. Each year, the program honors outstanding mathematics and science teachers throughout the United States and its territories in recognition of:

high-quality classroom performance;
the effects teachers have on students; and
the teacher's personal and professional goals.

During its first decade, the PAEMST program has received significant favorable national attention and recognition while expanding its scope to embrace elementary-school teachers as well as middle/secondary-school teachers of mathematics and science.

After a rigorous state-level screening and selection process, the state finalists are again screened at the national level before Presidential Awardees are named to represent the states, territories, and jurisdictions covered by the PAEMST program.