Environmental Science teacher Ashley Steadman is known for engaging her students in a creative way and bringing enthusiasm to the classroom. In 2021, she was nominated for Norwegian’s Giving Joy. To her great surprise, she was named the Third Grand Prize winner, winning a $10,000 donation for Evans High School in Orlando, Fla.

The donation from Norwegian Cruise Line was invested in student engagements led by the Student Government Association and designed to build pride and unity amongst the students, faculty and community.
The homecoming dance was better than ever, with fun gifts for the students, and the annual talent show was free to students, with the top acts winning exciting gifts, all purchased from the Norwegian’s Giving Joy award monies.

Ashley’s Nomination Letter: “A Teacher, A mentor, A friend”

Ms. Steadman teaches AP Environmental Science and Honors Environmental Science at Evans High School which is a Title 1 School in Orlando, FL. She consistently goes above and beyond to ensure that all her students are engaged and understanding the material. She makes learning exciting with all the fun labs and activities she brings into the classroom. This year with the pandemic, doing labs was difficult but she found labs that students in class and at home could participate in and enjoy. She spends many hours outside of school planning lessons to ensure her students are ready to pass their AP test. Last year was her first year doing AP Environmental Science and she increased the pass rate by 700%. Ms. Steadman doesn’t just teach. She also sponsors the Student Government Association (SGA) SEL-ebrate club and coaches boys/girls swim team and girls soccer. With SGA, Ms. Steadman does her best to make every students’ voice heard and brings fun activities to lunches and after school. This year, even with the pandemic she hosted lunchtime games, spirit days, and club meetings after school for students to bond virtually and in person. Ms. Steadman is the teacher that students know they can go to for anything, even those she has never taught before!