Golden Apple Foundation
Help Us Celebrate New Mexico's TeachersExcellent teachers inspire students to learn, think, and create. At the Golden Apple Foundation of New Mexico, we catalyze teaching excellence through recognition, professional development, and community engagement.
Since 1994
Catalyzing Teacher Excellence
The Golden Apple Foundation of New Mexico has been recognizing exceptional teachers in New Mexico since 1994. Our vision is to improve education in our state by inspiring and engaging teachers through professional development programs and our community.
Our Pillars
Foundations for Teacher Success
Inspire NM’s Teachers
We aim to enhance educational and Professional Development for our teachers with Resources, Grants & Scholarship, and an active community of past winners.
Celebrate with Awards
The core of Golden Apple is our teacher recognition programs. We celebrate our Golden Apple Fellows and Teachers of Distinction at our Award Events.
Engage with Partners
We have amazing sponsors and community partners. Many of our partners offer grants and professional development tools and programs for teachers.
Our Impact
“The honor of becoming a Golden Apple Fellow in 2019 was incredibly humbling. As an elementary physical education teacher, it is affirming to know that teaching children physical literacy can be recognized as being an important component of teaching the whole child. Most importantly, Golden Apple gave me a chance to reflect on the incredible team I have been blessed to be part of at Inez Elementary. It is as a result of the administrators, teachers, and amazing students that I have worked with over the years that provided me the inspiration and grace to have the opportunity to even apply for Golden Apple.”
Michael Anderson,
2019 Golden Apple Excellence in Teaching Award Winner,
Inez Elementary School, Albuquerque Public Schools
Teacher Grants Awarded
Students Inspired
Excellence in Teaching Awards
Teachers of Distinction
Grants Received
Golden Apple Winners
Each year, 5 teachers win our Excellence in Teaching Golden Apple Award. These 5 winners join our community of Fellows, composed of past Golden Apple winners.
Our Community
Our Golden Apple Award winners join previous winners to form our community. The Fellows in The Academy truly represent the best teachers in New Mexico for the past 25+ years.
Video of 2020 Golden Apple Teachers of Excellence Award Winners
Our Partners & Sponsors
Supporting and Celebrating Teachers
We are only able to provide the programming and fund our awards through the generous support of our community partners. The Golden Apple Foundation of New Mexico thanks the following sponsors:
Support New Mexico's Teachers
Donate TodayBecause of donors like you, the GAFNM is doing more than celebrating great teaching. We are growing programs that make a lasting difference, such as the Fellows Academy, the From Seeds to Golden Apples Micro-Grant Program, and our Mentor-Mentee Initiative, which will offer direct, hands-on support to early-career teachers across the state.
Together, we are cultivating something powerful, not just for today’s classrooms, but for the future of education in New Mexico.