Congratulating Justin Lopez-Cardoze

Floor Speech

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Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to ask the House of Representatives to join me in congratulating Justin Lopez-Cardoze, a seventh-grade life science teacher at Capital City Public Charter School, for being named the 2020 District of Columbia Teacher of the Year.

The DC Teacher of the Year award is granted each year to a public or public charter school teacher who is dedicated to student growth, and creating connections with families and communities, and who provides high-quality instruction.

Lopez-Cardoze, whose father was born in El Salvador, is the first Latino recipient of the DC Teacher of the Year award. He follows in the footsteps of the 2019 DC Teacher of the Year, Kelly Harper, who was the first DC teacher to become a finalist in the national competition for teacher of the year since 2005.

Lopez-Cardoze is a devoted teacher. He views his work as a way to pay back the scholarship he won as a student, which made it possible for him to attend the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and become a teacher. The award comes with $7,500 and makes Lopez-Cardoze eligible for the National Teacher of the Year award. Lopez-Cardoze is still paying off his student loans but he has pledged to use $5,000 of his award, and to double that amount through fundraising, to create a scholarship fund to allow a student at Capital City Public Charter school to go to college.

His concern for his students is unfailing. When a student with sickle cell anemia approached him about proposed cuts to the National Institutes of Health, he led his students in developing an organization to educate the public about diseases often found among people of color.

In his three years at Capital City Public Charter School, in Northwest DC, Lopez-Cardoze has made himself an integral part of the community. He serves as the school's Science Department chair, seventh- grade team lead and middle school representative on the school's Equity Core Committee. As a member of the Equity Core Committee, he co-creates diversity, equity and inclusion sessions for staff and works to create a more culturally competent learning environment for his students.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to ask the House of Representatives to join me in congratulating Justin Lopez-Cardoze for being named the 2020 District of Columbia Teacher of the Year and for his commitment and dedication to DC students.

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