English Teacher Named Columbia High's Teach of the Year

Edward Chambers, an English teacher at , was named the school's Teacher of the Year for the 2012-2013 school year. 

Chambers, who has been teaching for 20 years, is a 1992 graduate of Teach for America, a nonprofit organization that recruits recent college graduates to teach for two years at urban and rural public schools. 

Chambers was one of 10 Teach for America alumni to win the organization's Excellence in Teaching Award for having a transformational impact on his students' lives.

He received a monetary reward and was invited to participate in an international trip focused on excellence in educational systems abroad. Chambers will also be publicly honored by Teach for America on July 27 in New York City. 

In his profile on the Teach for America website, Chambers says the fact that he comes from a similar background as his students has helped him impact their lives.

"I am their mentor and their role-model. For some of them, I am "pops," Chambers wrote. "However, and probably scariest for me, I am their measuring stick. If I did it, they can do it. They see an African-American male English teacher from Detroit who made it, so they know they can make it, too."