The 2024 Unruliest Educator Awards are in, and we couldn’t be more excited to celebrate these Unruly innovators, dedicated advocates and often-understated everyday heroes. Thank you to the 1,000+ friends and colleagues, who voted on the Unruliest among us. These educators understand the impact of innovative learning experiences for students, aren't afraid to try something new, and embrace challenges head on with creativity. We applaud them today and everyday!
Most Resilient Educator: Mary Boardwine
Library Media Specialist, Cloverdale Elementary
Faced with some initial challenges with implementing Unruly Code, Mary and her students are now crushing it with Splats! In just one month, they used over 2,000 blocks of code to make some of their own Unruly creations!
The Unruliest Advocate: Rebecca Bennett
STEM & PE Teacher, Browning-Pearce Elementary, Putnam County, FL
Becky is an advocate of Splats amongst her students and throughout the whole school. She gets her students involved in all our competitions, and they often blow the competition away! She encourages her students to dive into coding and see each challenge as an opportunity to learn. And let’s not forget, she let her students dunk her in a dunk tank for reaching two million stomps in Go Bananas!
Unruliest Library Media Specialist: Holly Nelson & Angela Brown
Kennedy Community School, MN & South Euless Elementary, TX
When Holly first started using Splats she said she had a “goal of helping put Minnesota on the map for computer science education” and I think her work so far speaks for itself. She is one of our most engaged and enthusiastic educators and inspires students, especially girls, to see themselves as STEM-capable students.
Angela always gets her students involved with Unruly competitions, inspiring them to find joy in coding and computer science! Check out her students’ latest Unruliest creations here!
Unruliest PE Teacher: Richard Green
Phys Ed Teacher, General Stanford Elementary, NNPS
Richard has a strong partnership with the STEM program at GSE. Together, they engage students in active Splats activities and get students excited about what is possible through coding! See how he is integrating Splats into PE here.
Most Innovative Educator: Jeff Monteith
New Hampton Elementary School, IA
Jeff makes it a point to introduce Splats to as many students AND educators at his school as much as possible. During one event, he placed the splats in his hallway so everyone who passed by could interact with them. He also led his students through creating their own innovative Splat games in this year’s Splat Tank! Jeff’s students won this event and their game made its way into our Unruly app!
Unruliest Newcomer: Nicole Hawthorne
STEM Educator, Grand Caillou Elementary, West Baton Rouge, LA
New to Splats this year, Nicole got all of her students involved in Stomp Madness and didn’t stop there! From principals to local law enforcement, Nicole got everyone involved in the Splatting and showed her students how fun computer science can be. Take a look at Grand Caillou students combining coding and active play here👏
Unruliest Techie: Elizabeth Moreland
Adair Casey Elementary, IA
Elizabeth has used Splats with a variety of grade levels to sharpen their block coding skills and make learning fun! From fourth grade students completing a Valentine’s Day guided coding activity video to using Splats to increase engagement in second grade ELA, Elizabeth has led the Splats implementation at her school like a pro!
Unruliest Principal: Craig Vaughn
Springfield Township Elementary, NJ
Craig Vaughn is taking his school to the next level by setting a goal of incorporating computer science into all classrooms within the school. He embraces out of the box thinking, supports his staff through his strong leadership, and fits the Unruly mold!
Unruliest District Innovator: Allyson Chappell & Ursula Martin
District Instructional Technology Team, Mobile, AL
Ursula and Allyson have gone above and beyond in their support of Unruly Splats. Their belief in the value of STEM learning has allowed many schools throughout Mobile the opportunity to join the Unruly community.
For this year’s Stomp Madness, all grade levels in the school got involved! From new teachers trying their first Splats lessons to students diving into coding, Adair-Casey Elementary students reached over 135,000 stomps and over 1,000 blocks of code in just five days!
Unruliest Mathematician: Elijah Ortiz
Fifth Grade Math Teacher, Concourse Village Elementary, NYCPS District 7
Not only has Elijah used Unruly Math in his classroom, he has many other great math strategies up his sleeve! From math relay races, Three Act Tasks, to tape diagrams for problem solving, Elijah is passionate about helping students become stronger math thinkers. He has also worked closely with the Unruly team to provide feedback that will help shape the future of Unruly Math. Hear some of Elijah's math teaching tips here.
Help us to celebrate and uplift those who are making a difference in the world of education. If you have a teacher or an educator who has made a difference in your life, reach out to them and let them know how much you appreciate them.
Unruly Studios makers of Unruly Splats, programmable, stompable floor tiles that help kids learn fundamental coding skills through recess-style play. Best for elementary and middle school students from PE to science or coding class, a great addition to the classroom for active STEM coding and play!
