A former Lawrence High School chemistry teacher is one of eight Kansas science teachers nominated as a state finalist for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science Teaching — the nation’s highest honor for teaching science and mathematics.

“It’s a huge honor in and of itself,” said Bruce Wellman, a Lawrence resident who has taken a job to teach chemistry and engineering chemistry in the fall at Olathe Northwest High School. Wellman had taught the past two years at Lawrence High.

The Kansas State Department of Education announced the state finalists this week during a two-day conference at the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center in Hutchinson. Each of the finalists receives a $500 award and will compete to become a national finalist, which includes a $10,000 award.

Wellman said his friend Dennis Burkett, an Olathe South High School teacher, nominated him for the award. It was an extensive process to complete the application.

The application included several pages of documentation about Wellman’s classroom practices and philosophy. He also had to send in a video about his teaching style.

Wellman focuses on not only teaching his students chemistry theory but also how to apply it to create solutions to problems.

“Having that approach is what we want to have in science education. It’s not just theory but the deeper conceptual level,” he said.

Two educators from each state, one in math and one in science, will be named national finalists next spring.

Doug Earnhart, a Basehor-Linwood High School teacher, is one of seven Kansas math teachers nominated for the award. Kelly Deters, a Shawnee Heights High School teacher, is also a science finalist.