Nancie Atwell, a teacher at Edgecomb’s Center for Teaching and Learning, is one of ten teachers named as finalists for the $1,000,000 Global Teacher Prize, a new international award referred to as “the Nobel Prize for teaching.”

Next month, Atwell will travel to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates to attend the Global Education and Skills Forum. The winner of the prize will be announced there on March 15 by Sunny Varkey, founder of the Varkey Foundation, the philanthropic arm of GEMS Education. Former president of the United States, Bill Clinton, is the honorary chairman of the Varkey Foundation.

The group of 10 was chosen from a shortlist of 50 teachers who were selected from over 5,000 nominations from 127 countries. The overall winner will be named by the Global Teacher Prize Academy, which is made up of educators, journalists, tech entrepreneurs, CEOs, and scientists from around the world.

The other finalists are Kiran Bir Sethi of India, Guy Etienne of Haiti, Jacque Kahura of Kenya, Phalla Neang of Cambodia, Stephen Ritz and Naomi Volain of the U.S., Azizullah Royesh of Afghanistan, Madenjit Singh of Malaysia and Richard Spencer of England.

A teacher since 1973, Atwell is the founder of the Center for Teaching and Learning, an innovative demonstration school that has served K-8 students of Midcoast Maine — and teachers from across the country and around the world — since 1990. She is the author of nine books for teachers, including the award-winning “In the Middle” (Heinemann, 2015). Over 500,000 copies have been purchased by teachers.

Thomas Newkirk of University of New Hampshire calls it “the greatest book on literacy teaching ever written in this country. It is our epic, our ‘Odyssey’ ... the most richly detailed account of a teaching practice we are ever likely to get.”

Atwell says of the prize, “If I were named the winner—if I were that fortunate—I’ll donate every penny of it to the Center for Teaching and Learning. The work we do here with children and teachers is that important.”

Atwell will host an open house at CTL on Sunday, March 1, 3 to 5 p.m., for interested parents, students, and members of the Midcoast community.

For more information, go to www.globalteacherprize.org; contact Scott MacDonald, Head of School, at 207-882-9706 or 207-563-5046; or contact Eric Chalek, director of marketing of Heinemann, at 800-431-7894, ext. 1122 or www.heinemann.com.