Global Education Awards
Global Education Awards & International Understanding Awards for Outstanding Teachers & Students
Each year Greater Lansing-UNA sponsors awards for outstanding contributions to Global Education and International Understanding. The Loy LaSalle Award is given to an outstanding K-12 teacher, and the Craig B. Stuttman Award is given to an outstanding high school student. All schools throughout the greater Lansing area are encouraged to submit nominations.
2023 Award Criteria and Nomination Forms
Get involved! Nominate an outstanding teacher or student for the 2023 awards!
APPLICATION DEADLINE IS MARCH 24, 2023
*We provide a cash prize to award winners:
Teachers- $300 | Students- $500
Past Global Education Award Winners
2022 AWARD WINNERS
GLOBAL EDUCATION STUDENT OF THE YEAR
Elisabeth Beer, East Lansing High School Graduate
Elisabeth graduated from East Lansing High School in spring, 2022. Elisabeth was an active member of the school’s Model UN Club throughout her four years as a student serving as co-president of the club her senior year. Under her leadership the club was able to participate in more conferences than usual thanks to Elisabeth’s leadership in raising the $20,000 necessary to participate in these programs ensuring that all club members were able to participate in the conferences regardless of their financial means. She was nominated by Mark Pontoni, ELHS’s Model UN Club advisor.
GLOBAL EDUCATION STUDENT OF THE YEAR
Emily Preston, Williamston High School Graduate
Emily graduated from Williamston High School, spring 2022. She was an active participant in the school’s Model United Nations program for four years, acting as Secretary General her senior year. Emily was nominated by Anne Wade, her Model UN program advisor.
Emily is currently enrolled at Lyman Briggs College, MSU, where she plans to major in Biology in anticipation of becoming a Physician’s Assistant.
GLOBAL EDUCATION STUDENT OF THE YEAR
Kayla Turner, Williamston High School Graduate
Kayla Turner graduated from Williamston High School in spring, 2022. During her two years at Williamston she was an active member of their Model UN Program.
Kayla is currently attending the University of Michigan’s College of Literature, Science and the Arts in which she plans on studying Politics, Philosophy and Economics. Additionally, she is studying art at the Stamps School of Art & Design. She plans on participating in the university’s annual Model UN conference, as well as the Alexander Hamilton Society for International Relations.
GLOBAL EDUCATION TEACHER OF THE YEAR
Nancy Lubeski, Superintendent of Huron Intermediate School District
Dr. Lubeski has worked as a middle school teacher, middle school principal, eight years as principal of the Wexford Montessori Academy, and as a senior administrator in the Three Rivers School District. She has been a member of LATTICE since her time as a graduate student at MSU and currently serves as its board president. Dr. Lubeski currently serves as the Superintendent of the Huron Intermediate School District in Bad Axe, Michigan. She works with seven local school districts and five rural school districts, overseeing educational services for the county.
2021 AWARD WINNERS
GLOBAL EDUCATION STUDENT OF THE YEAR
Brody Bowen
Brody Bowen, a 2021 graduate of Ovid-Elsie High School, demonstrated tireless leadership during the Covid pandemic. As a leader in the National Honors Society at his high school, he worked with the local food bank and organized food drives that benefited Ovid-Elsie students and their families. Brody was also a member of the Ovid-Elsie Awareness and Change Club, which focuses on cross-cultural understanding. He has a deep desire to understand the world and be part of the solution to its problems. His life goal is to seek an education that will provide a platform for him to be an advocate for others and to fight injustices in the world. Brody is currently at MSU in the James Madison College and is a member of UNA-MSU.
GLOBAL EDUCATION TEACHER OF THE YEAR
Julie Keck
Julie Keck, a teacher at the rural Ovid-Elsie High School for 25 years, has broadened the global perspective of “O-E” students. She has worked to increase their cultural competencies in a variety of ways. She has supported student exchange programs, involving international students as well as urban mid-Michigan students. She coached Model United Nations for ten years and taught global studies with an emphasis in comparative government. She is co-advisor of Ovid-Elsie Awareness and Change Club which she will accompany to Europe in 2022 to study the Holocaust and its impact on four countries.
2020 AWARD WINNERS
GLOBAL EDUCATION STUDENT OF THE YEAR
Ezekiel Zalante Ewulomi
Ezekiel graduated from Waverly HS in the spring, is now a freshman at Michigan State University, and was nominated by his teacher and advisor Robert Lurie who says Ezekiel is self- motivated and actively seeks ways to investigate the world – and then takes action to make a difference.
He spends countless hours volunteering with the South Sudan Rescue and Relief Association helping to fulfill its mission of helping the Sudanese community better integrate into the Lansing area.
He was the only high school member of LATTICE (Linking All Types of Teachers to International Cross Cultural Education.) The local educators and international scholars gained by Ezekiel’s participation. Lurie closed his nomination with – “Ezekiel is a true global citizen by both birth and by choice. He is an outstanding candidate for this award.”
GLOBAL EDUCATION HS JUNIOR OF THE YEAR
Marie Adele Grosso
Marie Adele Grosso is an East Lansing high school student who is passionate about furthering peace and justice locally and in the world. In high school, she is in Amnesty Club, Student Council, in groups specifically addressing LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice and student mental health and in Model United Nations (MUN).
When COVID-19 ended MUN in-person meetings, Marie Adele and other students from the U.S. and other countries created Shelter-at-Home Model U.N. (SHMUN) to provide global, teen-led Model UN virtual conferences twice a month. Marie Adele is the Director General of SHMUN.
2019 AWARD WINNERS
GLOBAL ED STUDENT AWARDEE
Elaine Gregory
Elaine is a freshman physiology student at Michigan State University. Her parents are Laurie Prange and Thomas Gregory. A Waverly High School graduate, Elaine participated in National Honor Society, student government, lacrosse, and cross country in high school. She has deep passion to learn from other cultures and loves to immerse herself in them. She traveled to Europe to focus on World War II. Her global studies included producing work on the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the ten stages of genocide. She is a leader and was co-organizer of a Town Hall meeting at Waverly High School which focused on world issues and on how students can use their voice to effect the change they want to see. She is described as “a global citizen who passionately investigates the world, critically examines issues… and has successfully taken action on issues of importance to her and other students.”
GLOBAL ED TEACHER AWARDEE
Naja Tatum-Moore
Naja Tatum-Moore is a kindergarten teacher in the River Rouge School District, previously East Lansing Schools. Ms. Tatum-Moore graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in elementary education with a concentration in literacy. During her undergraduate work, she worked as a Cultural Aide for the Office of Cultural and Academic Transition at Michigan State University. This position allowed her to connect and build relationships with freshmen, students of color, and international students to ensure their transition to MSU was successful. The respect and acceptance that she developed for all people and their cultures has continued into her career with children. Fostering positive relationships with her students and their families has inspired her to create a classroom community where all children are accepted and feel safe, one in which their value and differences are celebrated and embraced. Throughout her years as an educator she has built long-lasting relationships with families in the community and around the world. She continues to instill these qualities in her students each year in hopes of teaching them the importance of acceptance and respect for all people.
2018 AWARD WINNERS
GLOBAL ED STUDENT AWARDEE
Lia Bommarito
Lia Bommarito, now a freshman at MSU, has been actively involved in Model United Nations since 8th grade. She has been an excellent Model UN leader and role model. In high school, she was the Secretary General of Williamston High School’s Model United Nations club for two years and helped to develop the program for all four years of high school and during middle school as well. She is continuing her “MUN” career by volunteering for two different MUN conferences this year. Greater Lansing United Nations Association celebrates Lia’s appreciation of the important role of the United Nations and her dedication in helping to develop Model United Nations Programs. After college Lia hopes to work for the rights of minorities by working for the ACLU as an attorney.
GLOBAL ED TEACHER AWARDEE
Dana Blank
Global Ed Teacher Awardee Dana Blank has been bringing the world to Ovid-Elsie students for years. Besides an infusion of international literature in her classrooms, Dana has also brought internationals into her classrooms, school, and community, including Rodgers Kirwa (“Mr. Agriculture”) from Kenya last spring. Over the years, she has hosted 13 foreign exchange students and traveled to Europe multiple times to visit those students and their families. She has brought those life experiences back to the classroom. She helped to start the Ovid-Elsie Awareness and Change group last year and facilitated an eye-opening student exchange with Waverly High School. One needn’t be in K-12 to benefit from Ms. Blank’s internationally-focused classroom; she teaches at Lansing Community College where she incorporates global social issues into her English classes. As a member of LATTICE (Linking All Types of Teachers in Cross-cultural Education) she played a role in bringing a Greater Lansing UNA “World Friendship Day” to the students at Ovid-Elsie Middle School.