Even after just seven years in education, fifth-grade math teacher Jennifer Evans Lowery already has made impressive strides with students, teachers and the community at large in her role at Highland Park Elementary in Oklahoma City, OK. She devises novel strategies to keep students engaged and parents involved. Although her pancake breakfasts may look like any other early-morning meal, for instance, Evans Lowery uses them as a way to teach parents how to support their children nutritionally during testing periods— just one example of her insatiable appetite for innovative instruction.
Much of her free time is spent working with students before and after school, during lunch, and even at her own home for cooking lessons that reinforce math concepts like fractions. She has dramatically increased the number of students—more than 30 percent of fifth graders—who score advanced on the Oklahoma Core Curriculum Test (OCCT). She also is credited with improving the quality of elementary math instruction district-wide. On a lighter note, her “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” and Family Math Nights teach students that learning is fun.
A mentor to other teachers, Evans Lowery is the grade-level chair, serves on the science and math district-level curriculum committees, and is lead teacher on the math vertical team. She has also procured donations of food and money from local organizations for her school, a bonafide example of Jennifer Evans Lowery's dedication to making a positive difference in others’ lives, feeding the body and mind.
2010 Finalist for the Presidental Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Education
2004 B.S. in Elementary Education
2003 Masters of Education
1999 B.A. in Business Administration
