Press Releases    All Press Releases

Fairbanks Teacher Honored as One of the Nation's Best with Surprise $25,000 Milken Educator Award

Megan Eilers' work as a teacher and registered nurse is paving paths for students to pursue careers in healthcare

January 30, 2024

Santa Monica, Calif. — Megan Eilers of Hutchison High School is a "lifesaver" to the Fairbanks community in more ways than one! The dedicated health occupations teacher not only spends her time instructing future generations of healthcare workers and leaders, but she also serves as a registered nurse herself. Today, Eilers' work paid off in a big way with the prestigious $25,000 Milken Educator Award.

Cheers erupted among students, colleagues, dignitaries and media when Eilers was named Alaska's sole 2023-24 Milken Educator Award recipient — and one of up to 75 exceptional K-12 educators honored nationwide. The all-school assembly began as a normal visit from Fairbanks North Star Borough School District Superintendent Dr. Luke Meinert. Then, he flipped the script by introducing a surprise guest representing the Milken Family Foundation: National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) Chief Executive Officer Dr. Joshua Barnett. Eilers was stunned when Dr. Barnett presented her with the unrestricted, career-changing $25,000 cash prize. 

"Megan Eilers provides her students with a wholly immersive, one-of-a-kind education that they will remember for the rest of their lives," said Dr. Barnett. "Megan ignites a passion in students beyond facts and figures as they participate in highly engaging labs, develop lifesaving skills, and learn real-life strategies from healthcare professionals. Megan works every day to ensure students are prepared for bright futures, and for that, will be a treasured asset to the Milken Educator Network."

Hailed as the "Oscars of Teaching," the Awards will honor up to 75 recipients across the country in 2023-24 as part of the Milken Family Foundation’s Journey to the 3,000^th Milken Educator. 2023-24 will reach $75 million in individual financial prizes spanning the length of the initiative and more than $144 million invested in the Milken Educator Award national network overall, empowering recipients to "Celebrate, Elevate, and Activate" the K-12 profession and inspiring young, capable people to pursue teaching as a career.

"The collaboration, compassion, and consistency that Megan possesses every day is truly commendable. Her focus on teaching workplace-ready skills directly impacts not only her students, but the entire community. The Milken Award, one of the highest honors in education, is a natural fit for such an incredible educator, and it will continue to elevate her positive influence throughout Alaska," said Alaska Department of Education and Early Development Commissioner Dr. Deena Bishop. 

$1,025,000 has been awarded in Alaska since joining the Milken Educator Awards program in 1990. Eilers, who was completely unaware of her candidacy for the Award, is Alaska's 73^rd recipient. Recipients are sought out while early to mid-career for what they have achieved – and for the promise of what they will accomplish given the resources and opportunities afforded by the Award.

More About Megan Eilers

Saving Lives and Building Futures: Students at Hutchison High School have several unique opportunities to immerse themselves in realistic and often life-saving healthcare scenarios thanks in large part to health occupations teacher Megan Eilers. A registered nurse, Eilers has dedicated her life to both the healthcare and teaching professions, drawing from her experiences in the field to educate students about the realities of modern-day healthcare. Whether students are learning about CPR, First Aid, or the innerworkings of a pharmacy technician's responsibilities, her engaging classroom practices have yielded continuously growing class enrollment. When learning about the human body, students work together to create body posters, drawing and labeling each internal organ. Recently, Eilers provided students with the rare opportunity to participate in a placenta lab — and dissection — using three real donated placentas. Calling upon her own resources and connections, she frequently invites local healthcare professionals in to speak with students while also using their insight to align her programs with trends across the industry. 

Advocating for Health Occupations: A natural collaborator, Eilers serves on the Health Science Advisory Committee, working with others to ensure consistency in learning objectives districtwide. She contributes her leadership and thoughtful input to the district's professional learning community (PLC) health science meetings and professional development days, while her mentorship benefits both new and veteran health science teachers alike. Many look to Eilers as their Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) advisor, where she has led students to compete at the state and national levels. Additionally, having served on the Hutchison High leadership team, Eilers helped create a "Workplace Readiness" system for students, where they are scored on their workplace-ready skills. 

Broadening Educational Horizons: Eilers is constantly finding exciting ways to make the journey into the healthcare field more accessible for high school students. Working with the university system and the district, her students can go on to receive their certified nursing assistant (CNA) certification upon completing her health occupations program. Students also go on to receive annual First Aid, CPR and pharmacy technician certifications, as well as participate in several programs offered by local healthcare facilities due in large part to Eilers' diligence and support. 

Education: Eilers earned her Associate of Applied Science in nursing from the University of Alaska Anchorage in 2009 as well as both a Bachelor and Master of Science in nursing from Western Governors University in 2020 and 2022, respectively.

More about the Milken Educator Award Journey: "The Future Belongs to the Educated"

• The honorees attend an all-expenses-paid Milken Educator Awards Forum in Los Angeles this June, where they will network with their new colleagues as well as veteran Milken Educators and other education leaders about how to broaden their impact on K-12 education.
• Honorees receive powerful mentorship opportunities for expanded leadership roles that strengthen education practice and policy. Milken Friends Forever (MFF) pairs a new recipient with a veteran Milken Educator mentor; the Expanding MFF Resource and Explorer Program fosters individual veteran Milken Educator partnerships around a specific topic area; and Activating Milken Educators (AME) promotes group collaboration in and across states to tackle pressing educational needs.
• Veteran Milken Educators demonstrate a wide range of leadership roles at state, national and international levels.
• The $25,000 cash Award is unrestricted. Recipients have used the money in diverse ways. Some recipients have spent the funds on their children's or their own continuing education, financing dream field trips, establishing scholarships, and even adopting children. 

Follow the Milken Educator Awards tour and use the #MEA3K and #MilkenAward hashtags on: Facebook (MilkenEducatorAwards) | X (Milken) | YouTube (MilkenAward) | Instagram (MilkenFamilyFdn) | LinkedIn (MilkenFamilyFdn) | TikTok (MilkenAward).

Visit MilkenEducatorAwards.org or call the Milken Family Foundation at (310) 570-4772 for more information.

About the Milken Educator Awards
The first Milken Educator Awards were presented by the Milken Family Foundation in 1987. Created by Lowell Milken, the Awards provide public recognition and individual financial rewards of $25,000 to elementary and secondary school teachers, principals, and specialists from around the country who are furthering excellence in education. Recipients are heralded in early to mid-career for what they have achieved and for the promise of what they will accomplish. The Milken Family Foundation celebrates more than 40 years of elevating education in America and around the world. Learn more at MFF.org.

---