Wayzata teacher wins $25,000 prize

WAYZATA, Minn. (AP) — A math teacher at Wayzata West Middle School received a $25,000 prize for teaching during a surprise ceremony early Monday.

The no-strings-attached award comes from the Milken Family Foundation of Santa Monica, Calif. The prizes are sometimes called the “Oscars of teaching” and are given to dozens of teachers around the country annually.

The Minnesota winner this year is 31-year-old Seth Brown, who has taught in Wayzata schools for his entire 10-year career. He’s known for the creative use of technology in his classroom

Brown tells the Star Tribune he’ll use the $25,000 to help pay for graduate school and will make a donation to the middle school PTA, which helped buy technology for his class.

The Milken Educator Award winners are nominated without their knowledge by a special panel appointed by each state’s education department.