WASHINGTON — The National Coalition for Public School Options (NCPSO), a coalition of parents, students, teachers and advocates who support public school choice, announced Tuesday that Nevada Virtual Academy middle school teacher Gabriel Gonzalez as a national finalist in the coalition’s American Pioneer of Teaching award competition.

NCPSO launched the American Pioneer of Teaching award to recognize top-performing elementary and secondary teachers who work in pioneering public schools, such as online and traditional charter schools.

More than 900 teachers were nominated by students through the NCPSO website. The 19 state finalists were selected by members of the NCPSO board through an anonymous scoring system that awarded points for harnessing innovative teaching methods, adapting teaching methods to meets the needs of individual students, fostering mentoring relationships with students and overall dedication.

The state finalists will be posted online at www.facebook.com/NationalCoalitionforPublic SchoolOptions. The national finalist will be selected through a public voting process that began Monday and ends Friday at 5 p.m. The finalist will be announced on Tuesday in recognition of National Teacher Appreciation Week.