Plummer-Worley teacher named NEA Global Learning Fellow

Math and science teacher Laura Wommack of Lakeside High School in the Plummer-Worley School District has been named a 2019 NEA (National Education Association) Foundation Global Learning Fellow. She will spend a year in a peer-learning network, culminating a nine-day international field study trip to South Africa in the summer of 2019. Wommack is the only Idaho educator among the 48 recipients nationwide, said the Idaho Education Association, the state teachers union, in a news release.

“I am so excited about this opportunity because I have always enjoyed sharing multicultural experiences with students and this will help me do that in a more formalized way,” Wommack said, in the release. “I have noticed that students are naturally interested in learning about new cultures and experiences when their teacher has actually been there and can share their own photos, experiences, and personal stories. I can’t wait for the new stories I will be sharing about South Africa.”

Wommack is in her 16th year as a professional educator, primarily at small, rural schools in North Idaho. She recently returned to the school where she got her start, Lakeside High School, which is located on the Coeur d’Alene reservation. She is a graduate of the University of Idaho and has a master’s degree in STEM curriculum from Adams State University.

“The international experience and collaboration with other educators from around the country will enable Laura to bring a valuable global perspective back to her students,” said IEA President Kari Overall, in the release. Other IEA members who have been named NEA Foundation Global Learning Fellows in recent years include Mary Lee Ruch, of Coeur d’Alene, and Sonia Galaviz, of Boise.

The NEA Foundation is a public charity founded in 1969 with the aim of improving public education for all students. The foundation serves as laboratory of learning, offering funding and other resources to public school educators, their schools and districts to help solve complex teaching and learning challenges. For a complete list of all the 2019 NEA Foundation Global Learning Fellows and more information about the foundation, visit neafoundation.org.