October 9, 2009 Humble Sabo recognized as top-notch educator Play video

(NECN: Anya Huneke, Montpelier, Vt.) - When Tom Sabo came to work on Friday morning, he had no clue what was in store fro him.

An environmental science and biology teacher of 13 years at Montpelier High School in Vermont, he tends to focus more on his students than himself during the day.

So when students and teachers filed into the auditorium for an all-school assembly at 10:30, it did not cross his mind that all eyes would soon be on him.

Vermont Education Commissioner Armando Vilaseca laid the foundation: every year, one teacher in Vermont -- along with other across the country -- receives the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award and $25,000 along with it.

The decades-old foundation was created to motivate and retain teachers in education.

With an Academy Awards-style introduction, Gov. Jim Douglas announced the winner.

It was an announcement that drew a muted reaction from Sabo, though the audience and all his students and fellow teachers gave a standing ovation.

"So many folks here could have been called and it would have made total sense," Sabo said, humbly accepting the award.

Outside the school is one of the main reasons Sabo was nominated for the award. He played a key role in setting up a solar greenhouse at Montpelier High School and in moving the school in a greener direction overall.

"He's encouraged kids to take on community problems and really become involved in them, so he's had huge

The school now grows its own vegetables, composts its food scraps and has integrated sustainability into its curriculum.

Sabo said he has been an environmentalist since he was a teenager. He got into teaching thinking it would be a four or five year endeavor.

"This is 13 years later. I found myself in Montpelier, and I can't see myself leaving," Sabo said.