Fort Worth, TX, July 12, 2006—The Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth is pleased to announce that Deborah Diaczenko is the recipient of the 2006 Innovative Teaching Fellowship. Diaczenko will receive an award of $2,500, which is generously underwritten by Fidelity Investments. Diaczenko is a seventh-grade reading teacher at Decatur Middle School and was selected from 40 applicants. This year the Carter received more than double the number of applications submitted last year.

This award, which has been underwritten by Fidelity Investments since its inception in 2004, recognizes an educator who has demonstrated exceptional creativity in using the visual arts in classroom teaching. “Diaczenko was selected because of her enthusiasm and experience integrating visual art with language arts and music. With nine years of teaching experience in language arts and studio art, Deborah possesses the skills to successfully create curriculum for the Carter’s educator workshops,” said Stacy Fuller, instructional services manager at the Carter. “Her passion for both the arts and the Carter is evident in her attendance and involvement at our previous educator programs.”

This summer Diaczenko will work with Fuller to plan and write curriculum for the fall educator workshop, “Framing America: America’s History in Art, Literature and Music, the Twentieth Century.” This workshop demonstrates how to use art in the museum’s permanent collection and special exhibitions to make cross-curricular connections. The workshops are open to educators from all grade levels and disciplines, including classroom teachers, pre-service teachers, administrators, and homeschool educators. Participants come from all over North Texas, including both rural and urban districts. In 2005-06, the Carter’s eleven educator workshops reached 224 educators from over 40 school districts.