Local Teacher Honored in DC

By: Kate Shively

It’s 2:05 on a Friday afternoon in a small town in Massachusetts when the final bell at the local high school rings.

As if a levy has broken, students begin pouring out of every doorway of the school, heading in different directions. Some call to their friends while others run to catch buses or walk to the local Hess station.

As the school quickly empties in preparation for the weekend, Catherine Cabral bustles around the office space that she shares with more than seven other math teachers at Somerset High School, chatting animatedly with students and coworkers. She is dressed professionally, wearing a black sweater with black and white cropped pants.

The bulletin board behind her is filled with pictures of Cabral posing with students within the classroom, along with birthday cards given to her by her classes. Above her desk, a red and white square magnet hangs from a filing cabinet.

“There are women who change the world every day…women like you,” it says in small red calligraphy.

“My colleague gave me that magnet after I won my award,” Cabral, 51, said as she settled into her desk, a prideful smile crossing her face.

Cabral recently received an award called the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) for the academic year of 2007. The award is given out annually to one mathematics teacher from every state who “serves as a model for their colleagues, inspires their communities, and leads in the improvement of mathematics and science education.”

Cabral was nominated for the award by David Lanczycki, her former student, colleague and current boss.

Initially after her nomination Cabral didn’t want to submit a PAEMST application. She said she avoided it. It was due on May 1, 2007 but she only finally decided to begin the application process on March 28, after speaking to her daughter about it.

“She told me I had to. All I ever taught my kids was to work towards their goals and to strive forward. I wanted to be a good example for them,” she said.

To proceed through the competition, Cabral had to write a 20-page paper about the aspects of education, submit a 30-minute unedited video of her interactions in the classroom, supply proof and documentation of how she assesses her students and get three letters of recommendation.

“I cried when I read the references,” she said, her eyes beginning to tear.

“For the paper I sat at the computer and I just typed my heart and soul. I needed to get it done. To me, the most difficult thing about it was the grammar.”

Cabral said that when she finally mailed it off to be reviewed, she felt relieved.

“As an educator, it allowed me to see my strengths and weaknesses. I think every teacher needs to do something like that at some point,” she said.

Three months passed before Cabral heard anything, and the competition quickly faded from her thought process.

“I never expected to actually win,” she said. “I kept asking ‘What are the odds of me winning this?’”

The odds were better than she thought. In July of 2007 Cabral received an email saying she was a state finalist. On the weekend of her birthday she found out she had won.

“I didn’t tell the school about it at first,” Cabral said, laughing. “I only told my family and close friends. I was proud but it was personal for me.”

Later, in April of 2008, Cabral and her family were flown to Washington D.C. to attend Recognition Week, where the finalists participated in various activities including museum visits, federal agency breakfasts, professional developmental sessions, and award ceremonies.

“I felt so proud to be an educator during that time…proud to be an American,” Cabral said. “It was just one of the proudest times in my life.”

Cabral, whose mother was also a teacher at Somerset High School, had always wanted to be an educator—but not for high school. In college she was an elementary education major, but she became certified for grade levels K-12 after her advisor pushed her to continue taking mathematics courses.

After college, Cabral was given the opportunity to write and edit math books—a high-paying job at the time.

She turned it down.

“I went to school to teach, not to write math books,” she said proudly, pointing her finger in the air.

Cabral has since gotten numerous other opportunities at higher paying positions, including content coordinator for the high school. She’s refused all of them.

“I just love being in the classroom,” she said. “The kids keep me young. I have no desire to retire. I like what I do.”

Cabral got to see the full extent of what she does while in a professional association meeting at Recognition week, where she met with mathematicians and engineers.

“I don’t usually get to see the end product of where my students end up, but there I got to see it firsthand. I realized that these kids I’m teaching are out running our country. I was able to see the result of what I do.”

In recognition of her award, Cabral received a citation signed by President Bush, gifts from program sponsors, and a $10,000 award from the National Science Foundation.

Cabral teaches numerous classes ranging from SAT prep to Calculus I and tries her hardest to make the material easy and understandable for everyone.

For example, she took a call from a parent concerned about her child’s progress in an SAT preparatory course that she teaches. She proceeded to inform the parent exactly what she does in her class, what the student could do outside the classroom to improve his work, what she views as the student’s weaknesses and which homework assignments would be most beneficial for him to study.

“I don’t care what the superintendent or the principal thinks about me. I care what the kids think of me. They’re the ones I see everyday. They’re the ones that matter, Cabral later said, a smirk crossing her face. “That’s my success.”