PEMBROKE — Shane Henderson, a fourth-grade teacher at Pittsboro Elementary School and a graduate student in UNC Pembroke’s Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction program, has been named a Milken Educator Award recipient. The national honor includes a $25,000 cash award and recognizes early to mid-career educators who move learning forward.

The reveal came during a schoolwide assembly. Cameras swung toward the bleachers, his best friend whispered that they might be focused on him, and then his name was called. “I was in shock,” Henderson said. “My students ran over and hugged me. I kept thinking, ‘Is this really happening?’”

Henderson teaches reading with urgency and care. His fourth graders posted a 16-point increase in reading proficiency, with an overall pass rate of 75%. He

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