Winning the Presidential Award broadened my horizons from a small, rural town and connected me to a whole world of national interest in mathematics education. It funded my degree in Educational Leadership and shaped my future career in mathematics leadership. I am now the Mathematics Coordinator at the state level. My career in mathematics leadership has been one of the most fulfilling aspects of my life.

Catherine Beals Boise, ID | K-6, Mathematics, 1998

Dr. Catherine Beals is an optimistic, innovative mathematics educator who believes that all students can be successful learning mathematics. She utilizes her talents and education to provide empowering leadership for mathematics educators as the Idaho Department of Education Mathematics Coordinator. She seeks to create inclusive classrooms and programs that meet the needs of all learners. Dr. Beals is certified to teach kindergarten through eighth grade all subjects and is certified as a K-12 administrator. She was the 1998 PAEMST awardee in elementary mathematics while working as a Title I Teacher at Hawthorne Elementary School in Boise, Idaho. Dr. Beals's expertise includes mathematics education, teacher education, instructional design, and research. She earned a B.A in elementary education from Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, Idaho. She completed an M.A. in curriculum and instruction from Boise State University, and an Education Specialist degree in educational leadership from University of Idaho. Her doctoral degree in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis in mathematics education was completed at Boise State University. Dr. Beals's dissertation study was on designing an instructional framework for tier two intervention in mathematics. Dr. Beals has served public education as a classroom teacher for 14 years and a Title I Teacher for three years. In her leadership career, she served as a school and district administrator, a pre-service education professor, a consultant, and an instructional coach prior to serving in state leadership. Receiving the PAEMST award in elementary mathematics in 1998 shaped the rest of her career in mathematics leadership in the variety of roles she served in.

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