The Lowell Milken Center (LMC) for Unsung Heroes in Fort Scott, Kansas, an international educational non-profit, has awarded its prestigious Fellowship to Suzy Turner, a Talented and Gifted teacher and National History Day advisor at Nashua-Plainfield Jr/Sr High School in Nashua, IA. Suzy arrived in Fort Scott on June 26th for a week of collaboration with LMC staff.
The LMC Fellowship is a merit-based award for educators of all disciplines who value the importance of teaching respect and understanding through project-based learning. The Center selects exemplary teachers from the United States and around the world who will collaborate on projects that discover, develop, and communicate the stories of Unsung Heroes in history.
Suzy Turner, a teacher and National History Day advisor for the past 18 years at Nashua-Plainfield Jr./Sr. High School in Nashua, Iowa, has earned many teaching honors due to her students’ extraordinary successes, including National History Day (NHD) in Iowa Teacher of the Year (2009, 2013, 2020), and NHD Senior Division National Teacher of the Year (2020). The secret to Suzy’s project-based learning success is helping her students find topics connected to their personal interests, facilitating research opportunities at university libraries and archives, and providing project interview support. In 2021, after winning 1st place at the NHD national contest for his project on the Ghost Army of World War II, one of Turner’s students began lobbying for the Ghost Army Congressional Gold Medal Act. On February 1, 2022, his efforts achieved success when President Biden signed the bill into law, providing long overdue recognition for this top-secret deceptive unit.
Suzy has presented on history and history education topics at state and national conferences, facilitated professional development sessions for K-12 social studies teachers from eighteen area schools, and served as a guest blogger for PBS: History In The Classroom. As a scholar participant in programs sponsored by National History Day, the World War I Centennial Commission, and American Battle Monuments Commission, Turner has honored the memories of military veterans and fallen soldiers. She has helped improve understanding of the meaning of sacrifice by presenting graveside eulogies, writing silent hero profiles, and authoring published lesson plans for teachers. Most recently, Turner has lent her time and talents to elevating education about marginalized groups in history by authoring a lesson on the Americans with Disabilities Act for Building A More Perfect Union and a lesson plan book jointly published by the National Endowment for the Humanities and National History Day in recognition of our nation’s upcoming 250th anniversary. In her spare time, Suzy likes playing Scrabble and competitive golf with her family, as well as running road races.
LMC Executive Director Norm Conard says, “Suzy is a superior project developer and will have much expertise to share with our 2022 Fellows team. We look forward to working with Suzy and learning from her vast array of successes and experiences.”
While in Fort Scott, LMC Fellows gain knowledge, educational resources and support in helping students cultivate a passion for learning through the creation of projects that initiate positive change. Fellows will be equipped to develop Unsung Heroes projects with their students, applying and evaluating the stories of these role models who have changed the world
throughout history.