Matthew Lutz is sole winner of 2024 Marvin Maurer Award from the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, part of Yale School of Medicine’s Child Study Center.
Rockland/Westchester Journal News
NANUET - When Highview Elementary School Principal Matthew Lutz was called to the gym Tuesday morning, all he knew was that he was needed to deal with a "student situation." But when he walked in, he froze at the top of the stairs. The whole school was there, cheering for him.
Lutz is being honored with the 2024 Marvin Maurer Award from the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, part of Yale School of Medicine’s Child Study Center. He's the only nominee to be chosen for the award this year among educators across 27 countries.
Lutz, in his second year leading the grade 3-4 campus, has championed a schoolwide effort to weave social and emotional learning into the fabric of Highview's education.
He lauded staff and thanked students, who he called "amazing little people, but mighty people, who care about how other people feel, who include others, and who work really, really hard to be the best version of themselves."
The award itself is an honor, Lutz said. But the special surprise assembly from the entire school community left him "blown away."
"I honestly had no idea," Lutz said. "I'm so lucky."
Why was Lutz honored?
Students held cards that spelled out "Congratulations Mr. Lutz" as the principal walked through the gym's big wooden doors Tuesday. It was clear Lutz wasn't quite sure what he was being congratulated for as he descended the stairs to the gym floor.
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After Lutz was told about the Yale award — he didn't even know he was nominated — faculty and administrators took turns at the mic describing Lutz' leadership and efforts to help students flourish both academically and emotionally.
Third-graders Audrey Ng and Brayden Fritz read a letter sent by teacher Kim Stead's class as part of the nomination process for the Maurer Award.
"Every day Mr. Lutz encourages us to be the best version of ourself on the announcements," the letter reads. "That is why Mr. Lutz should win the prize."
What's RULER and SEL?
Lutz's award from Yale Child Study Center focused on his implementation of RULER, a five-step guide for teaching kids social and emotional intelligence, often called SEL.
RULER stands for: Recognizing emotions in oneself and others; Understanding the causes and consequences of emotions; Labeling emotions with a nuanced vocabulary; Expressing emotions in accordance with cultural norms and social context; and Regulating emotions with helpful strategies.
What is social and emotional learning:Here's what it looks like in school
SEL has become an academic buzzword as mental health concerns came to the fore amid pandemic shifts in education. Learning how to regulate emotions, make good decisions and maintain healthy relationships are seen as key to shaping healthy and happy contributing members of society.
Nanuet Superintendent Lisa Brady provided a more relatable way to think about the value of SEL and RULER for the young kids gathered in the gym: "We can be the smartest person in the world but we have to be able to express ourselves." She added: "The most important thing you can ever be is kind."
Lutz will be honored during the 2024 RULER Implementation Conference in New Haven, Connecticut, on March 4.
Nancy Cutler covers People & Policy for lohud.com and the USA Today Network New York. Reach her at ncutler@lohud.com; follow her on Twitter at @nancyrockland.
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