Celebrating the 2025 OWL Award Winners

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Story provided by Chelsea Isenor, Director of Communications and Board Administration

On Monday, June 16, 2025, the Kamloops-Thompson Board of Education celebrated this year’s Owl Award for Excellence in Public Education recipients – Dr. Ann Cheeptham and Lori Jane Froese.

The OWL Award for Excellence in Public Education has been a Board of Education Award since 2016. This award was developed to recognize and honour individuals, groups, and organizations who have enriched and advanced public education through their significant, system-wide, and outstanding accumulative contributions in Kamloops-Thompson School District over five years or more. Past winners can be explored here.

Board Chair Heather Grieve started the Owl Award presentation by sharing. “The Owl Award Committee had a competitive application process, as they do every year, and there is always a number of worthy candidates who could have qualified for this award. Tonight it is my pleasure to present the Owl Awards for 2025.”

The first award recipient, Dr. Ann Cheeptham has made a lasting impact on science education over the past 23 years, inspiring students and educators at the local, regional, and provincial levels. Since 2012, she has engaged more than 1,000 students across over 40 schools in hands-on science learning, making complex topics accessible and exciting. In 2022, she partnered with SD73 Science Teacher Morgan Whitehouse and Dr. Natasha Ramroop-Singh to secure the TRU Instructional Innovation Grant for the “Actions for Science Education (K–16)” project, which promotes awareness of microbiology and biochemistry. Her efforts also brought a 3D printer to Bert Edwards Science and Technology School, advancing STEM learning opportunities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Cheeptham played a key role in a year-long action research project focused on curiosity-driven, inquiry-based science education, helping to reshape teaching practices across the Kamloops-Thompson School District.

After receiving her award, Dr. Ann Cheeptham shared, “I feel really honored to be awarded with this prestigious award. For me, receiving an award is never the end goal nor the intention. The humble process of being nominated helped me reflect on my intentions and core values, especially in science education… I always enjoy going to schools and even in retirement I still want to do community outreach… Thank you so very much for your support and for this honorable award.”

The second award recipient, Lori Jane Froese has dedicated over 25 years to music education in the Kamloops-Thompson School District, leaving a profound impact on students and educators both within schools and throughout the District. For more than a decade, she directed the Kamloops Thompson Children’s Choir and the Kamloops Thompson Honour Choir, inspiring and nurturing the talents of hundreds of young musicians. As the District Fine Arts Coordinator, she played a key role in developing teachers' expertise, generously mentoring new music educators by helping them set up their classrooms and guiding them through the planning and execution of concerts and events. Her passion and commitment have helped shape a vibrant and enduring culture of music education in the district.

Lori Jane Froese shared appreciation for her colleagues while accepting her award, saying, “I don't really feel like I need the accolades, but I am humbled and honoured today to receive this award. I am so grateful to the support systems that I've had for so many years in this school district. I can honestly say in every school that I've been in, I've had principals that have been so supportive of arts education and specifically my music program… I'm so grateful for you all.”

Congratulations to this year’s Owl Award winners! We are grateful for all that you have done to help students, staff, and families in our district thrive in science and arts education.