The RISE Award: Recognizing Inspiring School Employees

RISE Award Implementation Toolkit

The Recognizing Inspiring School Employees (RISE) Award was created last year from the Recognizing Achievement in Classified School Employees Act (H.R. 276). (Learn more below.)

Each year, the RISE Award will honor the exemplary work of a school support employee, and states are encouraged to recognize their finalists. The AFT lobbied long and hard for this type of national recognition for our school support staff, and it is wonderful to see it finally actualized.

Each state must submit its nominations to the U.S. Department of Education by Nov. 1. Let’s nominate some incredible school support staff for this RISE Award. Will you help spread the word and share this with your members and school district? We have created a toolkit designed to support AFT affiliates in promoting and nominating an AFT member for the RISE Award. 

Learn how to get involved in your state!

About the RISE Award

The Recognizing Achievement in Classified School Employees Act, which was passed by Congress in March 2019, directs the U.S. secretary of education to establish a national award program recognizing the excellence exhibited by public school non-teaching employees (called paraprofessionals and school-related personnel, or PSRPs, at the AFT) who provide services to preK-12 students. 

Learn more here