Marshalltown High School history teacher Alex Abbe has received the James Madison Memorial Fellowship to assist in his professional learning. He is the only teacher in the state to be named a James Madison fellow this year.
Marshalltown High School history teacher Alex Abbe has been selected for the 2016 James Madison Memorial Fellowship. He is the only teacher in the state of Iowa to receive the fellowship this year.
As part of his selection as a fellow, Abbe will receive $24,000 to pay for his master’s degree studies and participate in a four-week summer institute in 2017 at Georgetown University in Washington DC.
“It’s exciting,” Abbe said of the fellowship. “It’s going to help my teaching a lot.”
A selection committee from the fellowship foundation approved Abbe’s application, which included his educational and professional organization background, essays and letters of recommendation. He is pursuing a master’s degree in American History and Government from Ashland University in Ohio.
He looks forward to the summer institute next year to deepen his content knowledge in history.
“I’m looking forward to learning and working with people who are passionate about history,” Abbe said.
MHS Associate Principal Deb Holsapple said Abbe has a passion for history and government and shares that with his students.
“He is dedicated to education and pursues opportunities to stay current on laws, policies and current events,” Holsapple said. “He leads through example for his students by bringing in his new knowledge and linking it to their lives and their futures.”
Abbe is a native of Schleswig, Iowa and received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Northern Iowa.
The James Madison Memorial Fellowship was created by Congress in 1986 for the purpose of improving teaching about the Constitution. One applicant is selected from each state every year.
