The Council of the Great City Schools and McGraw-Hill Education selected Dallas ISD teacher Eric Hale as the recipient of the 2019 Annual Queen Smith Award, which recognizes a top educator in the country working in an urban school district.
Hale, who teaches kindergarten and first grade at David Burnet Elementary School, will receive the award at the council’s conference happening Oct. 25 in Kentucky. The award comes with a $5,000 check and plaque to honor his significant contributions to urban education and the children he serves.
Hale is an active advocate for his school and community. He participated at almost every major educational event, raised money for technology and school trips for students, and spoke at the State House of Representatives on strategic compensation for teachers, among a long list of achievements.
“Every year I push myself to the next level in order to do more for my students,” Hale said.
In his ninth year teaching, Hale does not take all the credit for receiving this achievement, but shares it with the Dallas ISD community.
“I have grown and become a better educator thanks to some of the initiatives that have been implemented,” Hale said. “I am blessed to work for a school district that isn’t scared of doing what is best for children.”
Hale also credited the teachers and administrators he works with daily.
“There is a collection of Dallas ISD educators that are dominating the national scene, whether it be in policy, writing books, or in other areas,” Hale said.
But winning the Queen Smith Award is not the endgame for Hale. He wants to help his school become a lighthouse for the community and show his students that against adversity, if they work hard, there is power in expecting to be the best.
“Every year I teach I expect to win, and I expect my kids to love being in my classroom,” Hale said. “That is the energy I would like to put out there, and the kids gravitate to that.”
