Heather Harrell, a third grade teacher at the Taos Integrated School for the Arts, has been honored as a 2025 recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching — the highest award K-12 math and science teachers can receive from the U.S. government.
“Kids need to know the truth about the world, scientifically speaking,” Harrell said. “Science is about how the world works, and it dispels ignorance in a really interesting and dynamic way.”
The award was established in 1983, and educators from all 50 U.S. states and territories can be recognized. Harrell was nominated in 2018 after her students frequently scored higher on their science testing than the state average. Nominees like Harrell must submit an application showcasing their ability to teach STEM and meaningfully engage students.
A panel of scientists, mathematicians and educators then recommend awardees to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Awardees are ordinarily announced annually, but because of the pandemic Harrell didn’t learn she had won until this month.
“I videotaped myself doing a science class where we were building little vehicles and then using wind power to make the vehicles move,” Harrell said of her application. “The students loved it. My philosophy is definitely to do hands-on learning as much as possible.”
Harrell has 10 years of teaching experience and in 2023 acquired her National Board Certification, an advanced teaching credential that goes beyond a standard state teaching license. She lectured at the Organic Conference for Farmers as an organic farmer and later taught beekeeping classes. She’s also a former Investing in Learning and Human Potential Leader for the LANL Foundation.
One of Harrell’s favorite teaching experiences was taking a class to the Grand Canyon to study geology, which was offered through the LANL Foundation’s Inquiry Science Educational Consortium program. The class also participated in the Global Warming Express program, which allowed her students to spend Climate Action Day at the Legislature.
“I took my class on a field trip to the Grand Canyon over spring break and that was really neat because some of them had never left New Mexico,” Harrell said. “We got to hike down into the canyon and look at all of the different layers of rock. A guy who was a geologist actually came with us and talked about the rocks, fossils and layers. They learned about the history of how the canyon was carved by the river.”
She added, “I think in elementary school a lot of teachers don’t necessarily focus on science because there’s a big push to do mostly math and reading …"
Getting hands on
Today, something else is growing, not just in the minds of Harrell’s students, but in the soil.
Harrell eagerly awaits completed renovations of the school’s greenhouse, which is funded via grants she applied for from the LOR Foundation and Whole Foods Foundation. The greenhouse will house 16 raised beds for students to practice growing vegetables, conduct chemistry experiments and learn about photosynthesis.
“I think the incorporation of more science in all levels of teaching is important,” she said, “with more ‘living laboratories,’ active environments where real experimentation is taking place. Our greenhouse is going to be a living laboratory because we can actually grow things, track them and do experiments with light, photosynthesis and germination. There’s so many options there because it’s a living environment. It’s not a kid just looking at a book or screen.
“There’s all kinds of ways that living laboratories can be built around school campuses," she added. "It just requires funding, interest and somebody who’s willing to make it happen.”
Harrell said they’ve finished filling the raised beds with imported soil and are in the process of installing an irrigation and ventilation system. The greenhouse building already existed, but it was overrun by prairie dogs and sometimes reached over 100 degrees Fahrenheit inside.
The greenhouse will have a salsa bar and food tastings for students and parents. She hopes students will be able to sell excess produce at the farmer’s market. For her classroom, she’s ordering a hydroponic tower garden, which allows plants and vegetables to be grown without using any soil.
“We’re going to start planting cold weather crops right away with the kids,” she said. “Right now in my class, we’re growing sugar snap peas. They’re germinating them in paper towels so they can see the little roots come out, then we look at them under the microscope. Then, we can take that seed that’s starting to germinate and we can put it in the greenhouse. We’re going to use plastic cups to cover them to keep them from being frozen until it’s a little warmer.”
Prior to the pandemic, recipients of the presidential award received a $10,000 award from the National Science Foundation, a certificate signed by the president and a visit to Washington, D.C. Harrell hasn’t received much fanfare besides an email, but to her, the award means a whole lot more.
“I’m glad there’s something out there that recognizes teachers who want to teach science,” Harrell said. “That feels really important, especially in an age where there’s a political will to disregard science.”
Heather Harrell's name was misspelled in a previous version of this story. We sincerely regret the error.
(2) comments
Well done and well deserved, Ms. Harrell! I look back and fondly remember the teachers who really taught me something; who made the topic /issue so interesting and so alive, that it stays with me to this day. Congratulations on being one of those teachers.
Congratulations! What a wonderful gift you are giving to our kids!
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
All comment authors MUST use their real names. Posts that cannot be ascribed to a real person
will not be moderated.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.