EAST PROVIDENCE — Rhode Island's 2022 Milken Educator Award recipient, East Providence School District teacher Emily Rendine, joined her fellow honorees recently at a gala event held in Santa Monica, Calif.

The Milken Family Foundation, Lowell Milken – founder of the Milken Educator Awards and chairman and co-founder of the Milken Family Foundation – and Mike Milken – co-founder and president of the Milken Family Foundation, rolled out the red carpet for what it deemed "America’s outstanding educators."

Among them Rendine, a third grade at Hennessey Elementary, who was formally presented with her $25,000 cash prize at a national forum held at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) April 20-21. The gala celebration culminated a professional development experience for Milken Educators called “Celebrate, Elevate and Activate” K-12 teaching.

Rendine serves on Hennessey’s Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) and Equity committees, leads an annual STEAM night, and has participated in training to ensure equitable access to Hennessey’s most marginalized populations. She leads professional development in literacy, especially related to her training in teaching students with dyslexia, and is Hennessey’s lead teacher for the Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) Writing initiative.

Rendine has secured grants to create and maintain a school garden, tended by her students during the year and by the local Boys and Girls Club over the summer. The garden has helped students understand the value of green space in urban communities, and features like rain barrels serve as the centerpiece for discussions of water conservation.