A Wayne County educator known for his strong commitment to student success has been honored with an Excellence In Education award from the Michigan Lottery.

The award winner, Marvin Ray, teaches AP African Americans studies and U.S. History and Law studies at Cass Technical High School. The school is part of the Detroit Public Schools Community District.

The Michigan Lottery established the Excellence In Education awards in 2014 to recognize outstanding public-school educators across the state during the school year.

Winners of the weekly award receive a $2,000 cash prize. At the end of the school year, one of the weekly award winners will be selected to receive the Lottery’s Educator of the Year award and will receive a $10,000 cash prize.

Each winner also is featured in a news segment on the Lottery’s media partner stations: WXYZ-TV in Detroit, FOX 17 in Grand Rapids, FOX 47 in Lansing, WNEM-TV in Saginaw, and WWTV-TV in Traverse City. The news segment featuring Ray will air this evening.

“As an alum of Cass Technical High School and now a teacher there, Marvin Ray is an inspiration to his students and recognized as an educator who can be counted on to serve as a mentor,” said Lottery Commissioner, Suzanna Shkreli. “His dedication to fostering a love of learning in his students and providing an equitable learning experience in his classroom make him very deserving of the Excellence in Education award.”

Ray says his family fostered a love of learning and literacy early on and he wanted to have an impact in his community.

“From a young age, I have always enjoyed learning. Throughout my formative years I had an extremely strong system with my parents and grandparents, all of whom were huge champions of literacy and education. To put it simply, I enjoyed learning in school but learning at home was more fun. However, what I did not always enjoy was the lens through which some topics were covered in the classroom.

“By my senior year of high school, I realized that a career in education would allow me to meaningfully impact my community by addressing some of the systemic issues that sometimes discourage students from marginalized groups from fully enjoying the process of classroom learning.”

Ray was nominated for the award by a lifelong family friend.

“Marvin Ray is a dedicated educator at Cass Technical High School. He mentors the male students to strive to be the best that they can be. He has taught social studies, history, civics and is now an AP educator introducing his students to businesses by leading field trips and demonstrating how they are operating. He introduces students to business leaders to meet mentors and develop skills that enhance vision, goal setting, and teaches them their ideas can come to fruition. He spends countless hours in preparation to demonstrate that their hard work will lead to success. I am extremely proud of his motivation and dedication towards his students. He is the pinnacle of success proving to his students that giving back to their communities creates a generational gain to others. Cass Technical High School is his alma mater, and he loves what they have instilled in him enough to do the same for his students.”

Ray earned a bachelor’s degrees from Michigan State University and Wayne State University. He has been an educator for 16 years, the last two in his current position.

Excellence in Education award nominees are evaluated on the following criteria:

• Excellence – Their work consistently helps students and/or their schools or school districts advance to higher levels of academic achievement.
• Dedication – They consistently go above and beyond expectations to help students succeed.
• Inspiration – Their work inspires others around them to exceed expectations either academically or professionally.
• Leadership – They demonstrate clear leadership skills in their positions with their school or school districts.
• Effectiveness – The nominee’s work has clear and positive results on the educational advancement of students within the school or school district.