Alexandria, Va. – May 8, 2017—On May 4, National Family & Consumer Sciences Educator Day, the American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences (AAFCS) officially announced Brenda Osman, family and consumer sciences (FCS) educator, East Central High School, St. Leon, Indiana, as the AAFCS 2017 National Teacher of the Year.
Sponsored by Goodheart-Willcox Publisher, the Teacher of the Year award recognizes exemplary teachers who utilize cutting-edge methods, techniques, and activities to provide stimulus and visibility to family and consumer sciences in elementary and secondary education. Osman will be honored at the AAFCS 108th Annual Conference & Expo in Dallas, Texas, on June 26 during the Opening General Session.
Osman's award-winning program, "Community Engagement - Family and Consumer Sciences Skills in Action," helps East Central FCS students develop a sense of community through a creative, innovative, and multi-pronged approach, including Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) membership, community-based service learning, peer and cross-age mentoring, and career development. To date, over 700 students in Osman's program have participated in community engagement activities over the past three years, and her students have conducted more than 1,500 hours of service each year.
"Mrs. Osman exemplifies the ideals and purposes of family and consumer sciences and truly represents what it means to be an outstanding educator," said Rylie Seaver, FCCLA national president and student at East Central High School.
About Family & Consumer Sciences Education and
National Family & Consumer Sciences Educator Day
(Storify with Educator Day posts and photos at
https://storify.com/aafcs/national-family-consumer-sciences-educator-day)
In secondary education alone, more than 27,000 family and consumer sciences educators are teaching more than 3 million students personal development and career preparation skills in critical areas, such as nutrition and wellness, healthy food preparation, child and family development, environmental design, consumer decisionmaking, and personal finance. To learn more about the role and impact of family and consumer sciences secondary education, download a two-page fact sheet.
Family and consumer sciences educators also work within the Cooperative Extension system, through the nation's land-grant universities. Extension educators bring family and consumer sciences research and education programs for both youth and adults to local communities. To learn about the impact and effectiveness of Extension programs, visit www.neafcs.org/impact-statements.
In higher education, family and consumer sciences teacher educators prepare the next generation of family and consumer sciences educators who work in a variety of practice settings, including secondary education and Cooperative Extension. There are currently more than 100 family and consumer sciences teacher preparation programs in the U.S.
While family and consumer sciences secondary education, Extension, and university teacher preparation programs are strong, all have identified a current and potentially severe future shortage of qualified educators to meet their needs. National Family & Consumer Sciences Educator Day is part of the "Say Yes to FCS" educator recruitment initiative to help meet the need for family and consumer sciences educators.
For more information, visit www.aafcs.org/FCSEdPipeline.asp.
About the American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences (AAFCS)
Based in the Washington, D.C., area, AAFCS is the only association for family and consumer sciences students and professionals across multiple practice settings and content areas. For more than 100 years, AAFCS has focused its mission on providing leadership and support for professionals whose work assists individuals, families, and communities in making more informed decisions about their well-being, relationships, and resources to achieve optimal quality of life. AAFCS members provide research-based knowledge about the topics of everyday life to help create healthy and sustainable families. These topics include human development, personal and family finance, housing and interior design, food science, nutrition and wellness, textiles and apparel, and consumer issues.
For more information, please contact:
Gwynn Mason
Senior Director, Communications & Marketing, AAFCS
703-706-4613
gmason@aafcs.org