11/17/2022
Education and Outreach
Corwyn Evans-Klock, or Mr. EK as his students call him, is still in shock that he was awarded a Heart of Education Award earlier this year. “The fact that my student nominated me and that if they hadn’t, I would never have even been able to apply still brings tears to my eyes as I think about it now,” he exclaims, adding, “tears of joy!”
As a nonprofit, The Smith Center created its annual Heart of Education Awards to celebrate Clark County School District (CCSD) educators who go above and beyond. The center recognizes over 700 finalists each year, with the top 20 teachers each receiving a $5,000 cash award, a medallion and a $1,000 donation to their school.
Community members nominate teachers for the awards program each year, and nominated teachers submit applications that undergo a thorough review process.
An AP science teacher at Mojave High School, Evans-Klock was surprised to be selected because he believed it “was an honor given to more veteran teachers or teachers whose impact was wider than their classroom and their school. I knew deep down that I wanted the award, but I felt certain that it could never come to me,” explains Evans-Klock, who is in his tenth year in the classroom.
He adds that “receiving the award felt beyond wonderful—an acknowledgment that my hard work was being recognized and that society cares about us as educators. It reaffirmed my commitment to stay in education despite the better-paying career options out there for scientists.”
Evans-Klock’s impact on Mojave High School’s AP Science program can’t be overstated. He took on AP Chemistry as a second-year teacher and brought the pass rate from 0 to 60 percent. He developed a new curriculum for AP environmental science. During his first year of teaching AP biology, Mojave had its highest mean AP biology score in ten years. Using relentless recruitment, Evans-Klock went on to double the size of the school’s AP biology classes.
He attributes his success in the classroom to “a complex combination of awareness of needs, pursuit of positivity, and pure joy in teaching. I embodied the belief that each student could succeed, supported their dreams and worked tirelessly to create a community of learners,” he explains.
Evans-Klock points especially to his awareness of education gaps that are becoming bigger and bigger throughout our society.
“Teach for America helped me see from the moment we started training that our purpose as educators is bigger than ourselves and our classrooms,” he says. “ Our society is hurting, and our systems are faltering or failing. The education gap should not exist and should not be getting larger. The awareness of all the ground that needs to be made up and all the advantages my students lack drives me to work harder and harder to try and make a difference.”
But it's not just his drive to make a difference that motivates Evans-Klock.
“When I have a former student reach out to share their successes, or exam scores come back better than expected, or a student simply says thank you for caring about me — there is nothing like that swell of joy I feel,” he explains. “It is the feeling that we matter — that we make a difference. The feeling that as a human being I have done something good with my time and energy. Whether it is selfish or selfless, I crave that feeling of positivity and it drives me to continue taking on challenges.”
Evans-Klock wishes the same joy he feels when his students reach out to him to share their achievements and the thrill he felt when he won the Heart of Education Award could be passed on to his CCSD colleagues.
“I wish so many other teachers could receive this recognition because it truly made a difference in how I see myself and my work,” Evans-Klock enthuses. “I also wish teachers had more time to learn and grow from each other. This award highlighted the amazing potential resource that we as educators represent for each other.”
LEARN MORE
The nomination period for The Smith Center’s Heart of Education Awards runs from November through January each year. To learn more about this awards program, visit www.TheHeartofEducation.org.