Timpview Teacher First to Receive AATG Award

The American Association of Teachers of German (AATG) has selected Dr. Stephen Van Orden, German teacher at Timpview High School in Provo, Utah, as the K-12 recipient of the 2020 Outstanding German Educator Award. Each year AATG selects one secondary teacher and one university professor to receive its highest honor.

The award is presented in recognition of demonstrated, long-term excellence in German education and creative leadership in German language education in local, state, and national arenas. “This year’s Outstanding German Educator recipients represent the best in our profession,” said Iris Bork Goldfield, chair of the awards committee. “It is inspiring to see how much these extraordinary German teachers have accomplished—and how their students and our professions have benefitted from their work.” Stephen Van Orden will be recognized at a virtual presentation to be held on November 21 during the annual American Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) conference.

Dr. Van Orden is only the second Utahn and only secondary teacher in Utah to have ever received this honor.

Timpview High School is also one of only a handful of German programs in the Unite States that AATG has recognized as a Center of Excellence. Additionally, The German American Partnership Program (GAPP) recently named Timpview a School of Distinction in honor of Timpview’s highly successful GAPP Exchange with the Franziskaneum school in Meißen, Germany. Students at Timpview expand their German learning beyond the classroom through a language and culture exchange with the Franziskaneum.

Students from Timpview visit the Franziskaneum every other year in June, and students from the Franziskaneum visit Timpview every other year in October. Hundreds of students on both sides have participated in the exchange since 2001. Dr. Van Orden also collaborates with teachers in other disciplines each year to plan expansive projects that enable cross-curricular learning and cultural bridge-building.

Through these projects, students are able to connect their German learning with music, art, science, history, geography, and language arts. Dr. Van Orden strives to provide a learning environment and high-quality instruction that will empower students individually to progress as much as they can in their German language skills.

Congratulations Mr. Orden! Thanks for continuing to provide an excellent education to our students! 

Annual Invest Nest High School Business Plan Competition to Select Winners at Public Event

• April 26th, 2024

Our city is proud to host the Invest Nest state competition, and we wish Kara Miller from our...

Life Skills Abound at Centennial Middle School’s Reality Town

• April 26th, 2024

Navigating the twists and turns of adult finances, grappling with sudden expenses, and striving for...

Dixon Farewell Open House

• April 25th, 2024

Anyone who has attended or worked at Dixon, you are invited to join us for a celebration of...