Tuscaloosa Academy Teacher Earns Prestigious Fellowship, Trip To Arctic

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Tuscaloosa Academy history teacher Jaclyn Foster has been named one of 50 educators selected for the fellowship of a lifetime that will take her to one of the farthest corners of the earth.

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On Monday, the school announced that Foster was named a Grosvenor Teacher Fellow with the National Geographic Society and Lindblad Expeditions, which will see her travel to the High Arctic of Svalbard in a few weeks.

Known for its three main seasons — Polar Summer, Northern Lights Winter and Sunny Winter —the region also includes Longyearbyen, which is considered the world’s northernmost urban community.

"I will bring my experiences back to the classroom to inspire my students to have an explorer's mindset," Foster told Patch.

Foster described the Grosvenor Teacher Fellowship (GTF) as a professional development opportunity for pre-K–12 educators, which is made possible by a partnership between Lindblad Expeditions and the National Geographic Society.

The annual application process is competitive and used to select educators to then be hosted on Lindblad Expeditions’ voyages for a "life-changing, field-based experience."

In addition to the fellowship, Foster is no stranger to accolades. As Patch previously reported, Foster was named the 2021 Alabama History Teacher of the Year by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

An 18-year veteran educator, she currently teaches middle school civics, U.S. history and geography at Tuscaloosa Academy.

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