Grant Boulanger,  M.Ed. ’12, a Spanish teacher at Skyview Middle School in the North Saint Paul, Maplewood, Oakdale District (ISD 622), has been selected as the recipient of the Minnesota World Language Teacher of the Year Award for 2015 from the Minnesota Council on the Teaching of Languages and Cultures (MCTLC).This is one of the organization’s highest awards and recognizes outstanding all-around work in the field of world languages and cultures education.

“Grant, who earned his M.Ed. and ESL and Spanish licenses through the Second Language Education program in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, has been an innovator and leader in the World Language teaching community throughout his years of teaching Spanish,” said Susan Ranney, department senior lecturer.  “His practice embodies his passion for the language and his belief that all students can learn through rich exposure to the language in engaging and communicative ways.  He inspires both his students and other teachers.”

Boulanger will be recognized at MCTLC’s annual conference on October 23. The award represents the first step toward the National Teacher of the Year Award, sponsored by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages.

Numerous colleagues, parents, and students submitted letters of support on his behalf.

Patty Phillips, former superintendent of ISD 622, wrote, “Grant Boulanger lights up students’ minds and faces. It’s such a professional treat to observe him teaching, and I always leave his classroom feeling I’ve been to a very special place, a place where students are having so much fun they don’t realize they’re learning, as well as a place where doors are opened that will change the trajectory of their lives.”