Winona State University Alumnus Luke Merchlewitz ’01 has been honored with the inaugural Harriet Sanford Award for Distinguished Global Learning. The award recognizes Merchlewitz’s work as an alumnus of the National Education Association Foundation’s global learning fellowship.
Merchlewitz received his master’s degree in Education from Winona State in 2001, but his involvement with the WSU community goes far beyond that. He has served as an adjunct music faculty member, as a Teach 21 participant and speaker, and as the WAPS liaison member on WSU’s Education Village Task Force. He has supervised WSU practicum students and student teachers, co-created the ‘Warriors to Readers’ program, and hosted reading tutors from Joan Sax Bendix’s WSU class at Washington-Kosciusko Elementary School, where he currently teaches second grade.
Merchlewitz’s previous honors include: Winona State Distinguished Alumnus Award (2016), Winona Teacher of the Year (2009), Minnesota Teacher of the Year Top 10 Finalist (2009) and Minnesota Teacher of Excellence (2010). He was also named a Top 10 Finalist for the NEA Foundation for Excellence (2010), a NEA Foundation Global Learning Fellow (2011) and an NEA Foundation Senior Global Learning Fellow (2012 to present).
Read more about Merchlewitz and the Harriet Sanford Award for Distinguished Global Learning in the Winona Daily News article: “‘It’s life-changing’: Winona teacher, chosen for national award, reflects on global learning“
