Garfield Heights student, teacher win Maltz Museum ‘Stop the Hate’ awards

Two members of Garfield Heights City Schools were named top winners in the Maltz Museum’s annual Stop the Hate contest, the district announced. Carol Miller, a sophomore at Garfield Heights High School, won first place in the contest’s poetry competition and received a $2,500 scholarship and a $2,000 anti-bias education grant for the district. Matthew Thompson, a middle school teacher in the district, was named one of two Stop the Hate teachers of the year and received a $1,000 prize.

The awards recognize individuals who speak out against bigotry and hatred. Miller’s winning poem also was featured on a segment of the podcast The Sound of Ideas, the district said. The announcement highlighted Mr. Chamberlain, who advises the Stop the Hate efforts at the high school, for his work supporting student participation.

District officials framed the honors as part of Garfield Heights City Schools’ ongoing commitments to inclusivity and anti-bias education. The scholarships and grant are intended to support the student and provide funds for anti-bias programming at the high school; the transcript did not specify whether the $2,000 grant is administered by the Maltz Museum or another entity. The teacher prize of $1,000 recognizes a personal commitment to anti-bias instruction; the transcript said Thompson was one of two teachers to receive that recognition but did not name the other teacher.

The announcement was delivered as part of routine district remarks; no formal board action or funding vote was recorded in the transcript. The district thanked staff and the community for supporting the programs and noted the awards as examples of the district’s work on diversity and inclusion.