April O'Neil / news@WHMI.com

A Livingston County educator known for inspiring his students has been honored with an Excellence In Education award from the Michigan Lottery.

Joshua Etheridge is an Art Teacher at Hartland High School (pictured). He was nominated for the award by a former student.

The Michigan Lottery established the Excellence In Education awards in 2014 to recognize outstanding public-school educators across the state during the school year.

Winners of the weekly award receive a $2,000 cash prize. At the end of the school year, one of the weekly award winners will be selected to receive the Lottery’s Educator of the Year award and will receive a $10,000 cash prize.

Etheridge says his experience as a student led him to a career in education.

“I was a non-traditional student, and struggled to fit in. In most cases, I had no one to talk to in school. I vowed that I would become a teacher that would not only be there for students academically, but personally as well. Personal connections make all the difference in the world when it comes to a students’ development.”

Etheridge earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from Concordia University. He has been an educator for 21 years, the last three with Hartland High School.

“We recently completed multiple painting projects as a class. One of them, made by my nominator, Breanna Zaborowski, is installed at the football field. Each year we also take a field trip and stage a professional photo shoot. Seeing the students’ creativity come to life as we work on these projects together is truly amazing!”

Excellence in Education award nominees are evaluated on the following criteria:

Excellence – Their work consistently helps students and/or their schools or school districts advance to higher levels of academic achievement.
Dedication – They consistently go above and beyond expectations to help students succeed.
Inspiration – Their work inspires others around them to exceed expectations either academically or professionally.
Leadership – They demonstrate clear leadership skills in their positions with their school or school districts.
Effectiveness – The nominee’s work has clear and positive results on the educational advancement of students within the school or school district.