Minarets High School's U.S. and World History teacher, Daniel Ching, has been named an Apple Distinguished Educator (ADE) and joins more than 2,000 other ADEs around the world.

"This puts Daniel into some very distinguished company nationally and internationally," said Minarets Principal Michael Niehoff. "We are very proud of Daniel's work on campus and in the greater education community."

However Ching doesn't give himself the credit.

"I think that this honor can only be attributed to the amazing staff and students at Minarets High School who inspire me everyday to try and be an innovative educator," Ching said. "I am so proud to work for the Chawanakee Unified School District where students and teachers are encouraged to be creative in education. There are incredible leaders at my school and any success I may have is a direct result of that."

Ching is the fourth person at Minarets to earn the ADE title. Technology and advanced media instructor Jon Corippo, media production and digital photography teacher Patrick Wilson, and are also ADE's.

Chawanakee Unified School District Superintendent Bob Nelson is very pleased to see so many Chawanakee educators being recognized for their efforts by Apple.

"We're super excited about Daniel Ching," Nelson said. "Daniels' everything you could want in a teacher. He's a great guy that the students admire and he's brilliant so this just adds to his legacy."

"At the end of the day teachers must ask themselves, 'Is my approach in the classroom what's best for kids?," Ching said.

The ADE application process consists of answering questions and submitting a video that illustrates how teachers are integrating Apple technology into their classroom's learning environment. Apple looks for educators that "explore new ideas, seek new paths, and embrace new opportunities," according to the ADE website, and that can "collaborate on solutions to the global education challenges of today and tomorrow."

Details: www.apple.com/education/apple-distinguished-educator