Fred Cole -2017 Teacher of the Year
Fred Cole - 2017 Teacher of the Year
Marquette High Senior High School - Marquette, Michigan
Fred Cole, ALA 2017 High School TOY Award winner.
Fred Cole is a truly exceptional teacher of law-related subjects. He teaches courses in U.S. Government and Advanced Placement U.S. Government, Economics, and Introduction to Law to students at Marquette Senior High School in Marquette, Michigan.
He improves his students’ knowledge of, and experience with, the law through the We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution competition, moot court competitions, and classroom programs by inviting local attorneys, judges, and university professors.
In 2005, Mr. Cole’s students were the first from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to take part in the We the People state finals. Many of his former students have volunteered to come back during their college breaks to coach next years’ students. This year, they were the first team north of Grand Rapids to be invited to the We the People National Finals in Washington D.C.
Mr. Cole’s impact on his students is evident from their performance on the Advanced Placement U.S. Government and Politics Exam. Ninety percent of his students pass – many years, fifty percent of them score a five, which is the top score.
Post-high school, his students continue education in government and politics, many becoming lawyers and judicial clerks. As Molly Phillips Ombrello, a former student and now-practicing lawyer, said “(Mr. Cole’s) enthusiasm for the study of American jurisprudence was infectious.”
Mr. Cole has been recognized as National Law-Related Educator of the Year in 2005 by Street Law, Inc., and as Teacher of the Year in 2005, by the Marquette Area Public Schools. He was selected as a Mentor Teacher in the James Madison Leadership Project of the Center for Civic Education for 2015 – 17. He has been awarded many other honors from both law-related groups and educational state and regional organizations.
In a note to the American Lawyers Alliance, Mr. Cole wrote, “Thank you very much for coordinating the ALA TOY awards and for sharing the picture with the Center for Civic Ed! I greatly appreciate the recognition and award. More importantly though, thank you for your support for law related education and teachers across the country.