The National Education Association will honor Sam Long, STEM teacher and member of St. Vrain Valley Education Association, with its highest and most prestigious award, the NEA Human and Civil Rights (HCR) Awards, during a virtual ceremony on Jun. 29. The theme of this year’s 2021 NEA HCR Awards ceremony is “Out of Struggle Comes Progress: Grounded in our History; Igniting our Future—and will include the first-ever award to recognize outstanding leadership in Native American communities.”
“In the middle of a global pandemic, an economic crisis, and racial and social upheaval, across race and space, native and newcomer, in schools and neighborhoods across America, there are unsung heroes who continually bend the arc of the moral universe more closely towards justice every day,” said NEA President Becky Pringle. “No matter what we look like or where we come from, they hold politicians accountable for their actions, call out efforts to divide us, and rewrite the rules so the wealthy and corporations pay their fair share.”
A STEM-wiz in Colorado’s St. Vrain Valley School District, Sam is an excellent educator, who has navigated the hardships of the past year: COVID-19, social upheaval, and increased reliance on technology. As a champion of the LGBTQ+ community, Long sponsors his school’s Gender and Sexuality Alliance Network and dedicates a class to introduce his own gender identity. He’s the co-founder of the Colorado Trans/Nonbinary Education Network, noted for passing the 2020 “Right to be Out Rule”— landmark legislation that mandates safe spaces free from harassment of individuals for being open about their sexual orientation or gender identity in public schools. Long earns the Virginia Uribe Memorial Award for Creative Leadership in Human Rights.
“Sam personifies what it means to be a brave and compassionate advocate for LGBTQ+ students,” said Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association. “He leads and mentors with such empathy that it inspires others to be better versions of themselves. He is a true inspiration to his fellow educators and certainly to his students.”