Cobb Educator Honored For Innovative Teaching In Marietta

MARIETTA, GA -- A Marietta school teacher was honored this week for an innovative program she is implementing at a Cobb County elementary school. Monica Alicea, an educator at Cheatham Hill Elementary School, was presented with a check for $7,000 from part of a grant from Voya Financial Thursday during a surprise celebration in the school’s cafeteria.

“We are honored to recognize Monica Alicea as the third place winner in Voya’s 2017 Unsung Heroes program,” said Heather Lavallee, president of Tax-Exempt Markets at Voya Financial. “At Voya, we are proud to recognize our nation’s teachers who go above and beyond as they educate the children in their communities."

Alicea’s innovative initiative “Serving 4 Cause, Farm 2 Table,” which focuses on hosting a dinner to benefit MUST Ministries’ “Save It Forward,” program, has gained national attention. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

She is among only 100 winners selected from more than 1,200 applications. The winners received a $2,000 award in initial funding and with Alicea winning third place in the awards, her total was boasted to $7,000.

“This program is a wonderful opportunity for our students to learn about cooking and nutrition while benefitting the community around us,” said Keeli Bowen, principal of Cheatham Hill Elementary. “The hard work and commitment from Monica to start and nurture this project as it grows is remarkable. To know our students are gaining culinary skills, while also gaining servant leadership abilities by helping families in need, makes this program a win for everyone involved.

Alicea plans to use the Voya grant to buy gardening equipment so that her students can have a direct role in growing produce that feeds Georgia families.

Voya Financial has awarded more than $5 million in grants to more than 2,000 educators across the United States since 1996.

Image via Alejandra Cadiz