Morgan Jones | Web Managing Editor

Over the weekend, AP Statistics teacher Mrs. Amanda Leahy was named Indiana’s Advanced Placement-Teacher Investment Program (AP-TIP) Math Teacher of the Year. The AP-TIP program, sponsored by Notre Dame University’s Center for STEM Education, provides professional development to Indiana teachers during a conference each fall.

According to the program’s website, the AP-TIP project aims to increase the amount of qualifying AP scores (a three and above) in participating schools when they test for college credit each spring.

Mrs. Leahy is the third of three Avon teachers to be given the AP-TIP IN title. During last year’s convention, AP Chemistry teachers Mr. Matthew Payne and Mrs. Kathleen Kosinski were both named the AP-TIP IN Science Teacher of the Year.

Mrs. Leahy gave a short acceptance speech on Purdue University’s campus when she was announced the recipient of the award.

“I think when you empower teachers and support them by giving them the things that they need to be successful in their classrooms, you see amazing things,” Mrs. Leahy said. “This year, I had a student who e-mailed me and said that he changed his major to statistics, and that was amazing to me. He said he never knew [statistics] would be so fun.”