Sister Nyirumbe nominated for Global Teacher Award

Global Prize shines spotlight on important role teachers play in society

Kampala, Uganda | RONALD MUSOKE | Sister Rosemary Nyirumbe, a skills education teacher from St. Monica Girls Training Centre in Gulu, northern Uganda, has been shortlisted among the 50 teachers who will compete for this year’s Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize.

Nyirumbe was picked from over 12,000 nominations and applications from over 140 countries around the world. The top 50 shortlisted teachers will be narrowed down to ten finalist teachers by the Global Teacher Prize Academy in June this year. The winner will then be chosen from these ten finalists. However, all the ten finalists will be invited to London for the Award ceremony at the Natural History Museum on Oct. 12, where the winner will be announced live on stage.

“I’m honoured to be named a Varkey Foundation finalist for the 2020 Global Teacher Prize. #GTP2020. What an amazing group of people they’ve selected! #Loveisthekey #God Bless,” Sister Nyirumbe said on March 20, in a post on her Facebook page.

The Global Teacher Prize was set up to recognize one exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession as well as shine a spotlight on the important role the teachers play in society. By unearthing thousands of stories of heroes that have transformed young people’s lives, the prize hopes to bring to life exceptional work of millions of teachers all over the world.

Now in its sixth year, the award worth US$1 million (about Shs 3.8bn) is the largest prize of its kind and is intended to highlight teachers’ stories that the Varkey Foundation hopes the public will be able to join in passionate debates about the importance of teachers.

Last year, the award went to Peter Tabichi,a Kenyan math and physics teacher at Keriko Secondary School in Pwani Village, Nakuru County, where 95% of the students are poor and almost a third are orphans.

With ten years to go to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goal 4 – providing quality education for every child – the Global Teacher Prize has partnered with UNESCO to ensure teachers are right at the top of governments’ agendas.

The prize is open to currently working teachers who teach children that are in compulsory schooling or are between the ages of 5-18.

Teachers who teach children age 4+ in an early years government recognized curriculum are also eligible, as are teachers who teach on a part-time basis, and teachers of online courses. Teachers must spend at least 10 hours per week teaching children and plan to remain in the profession for the next five years. It is open to teachers in every kind of school and subject to local laws in every country in the world.