The following is a press release from the Maine State Board of Education
Nancy Perkins is awarded the Distinguished Service Award by NASBE
AUGUSTA – The national organization that represents state boards of education from across the United States has awarded Nancy Perkins, a member of the Maine State Board of Education, its 2011 Distinguished Service Award. The national award from the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) is given annually to a state board of education member in recognition of outstanding service to public education.
“In this business, you often hear about a ‘life in education,’ but Nancy is truly the personification of that phrase,” said NASBE Executive Director Brenda Welburn. “It is testament to her character that after 30 years in education she is still searching for new ways to help improve education for students not only in Maine, but everywhere in the United States. For her continued efforts, we are proud to present her with our Distinguished Service Award.”
A member of the Maine State Board of Education since 2009, Perkins, of Cornish, started working in education more than 30 years ago as a 6th-grade teacher at Bonny Eagle Middle School in Buxton, Maine. In just two years on the State Board, she has shown leadership on the board in many ways: She has played a major role in the development of the Maine board’s five-year strategic plan, chaired the Certification and Higher Education Committee and testified before legislative committees.
Outside of the State Board, she has done curriculum work with the Portland Harbor Museum, which involved reviewing the museum’s collection of educational resources for alignment with the state’s academic standards, and she has written monthly educational book reviews for the Maine Education Association specifically geared to classroom teachers. In addition, she spent more than 10 years working on the statewide Instruction and Professional Development committee for the Maine Education Association and helped organize statewide teacher conferences.
The award was presented at NASBE’s national conference in Atlanta, Ga., on Oct. 14.
Mary Becker | Maine State Board of Education | 207-624-6616