Four Richmond Public Schools teachers are among 18 winners in the Metro Area of the 2020 R.E.B. Awards for Teaching Excellence.

The winners receive cash grants for travel and study designed to renew their passion for teaching and to enhance their ability to bring subjects to life for their students.

Out of the four Richmond winners, three teach at schools in the East End, and two teachers, Gilbert Carter Jr. of Franklin Military Academy, and Ridgely Carter-Minter of Woodville Elementary School, are brother and sister.

The other two Richmond winners are Jonathan Metcalf of Franklin Military Academy and Arianna Trickey of Swansboro Elementary School.

The Community Foundation and the R.E.B. Foundation, which sponsor the awards, could not present the awards in a group setting because of the coronavirus pandemic. But that did not stop the RPS administration from making the awards a surprising and special day for the winning city educators.

RPS Superintendent Jason Kamras and Richmond School Board Vice Chair Cheryl Burke, 7th District, went to the homes of the winners on Nov. 4, knocked on their doors and presented them with flowers and the awards.

“It was similar to the commercial for the Publisher’s Clearinghouse award,” Ms. Burke said of the visits to surprise the winners.

Mr. Metcalf won $7,900 to immerse himself in the culture and history of the Basque region of Spain during a three-week bike trip. Ms. Trickey won $11,500 to explore and understand how endangered ecosystems across North America, and their inhabitants, adapt to environmental changes.

Mr. Carter won $7,800 to explore the cultural and mathematical foundations of domestic and international botanical gardens, while his sister, Ms. Carter-Minter, won $7,400 to explore the origins of figurative expressions in Casablanca and Granada and incorporate those learnings in a self-published children’s book.

“Our district winners are in line with the expectation of our community,” said Ms. Burke, a retired principal of Chimborazo Elementary School. “There is more to come.”

The district Ms. Burke represents on the School Board includes the East End.

Other winners, and their study projects, are:

Henrico County

Donna Kouri, Greenwood Elementary School: $11,900 — To learn, connect and apply independent sustainable living skills through the combination of basic hands-on skills and modern technology by participating in Folk Schools and visiting national parks.

Sarah Peña, Greenwood Elementary School: $11,700 — To foster global citizenship through experiences with art by exploring museums, model schools and multicultural traditions in Dubai, Los Angeles, Chicago and New York City.

Michael Fetsko, Mills E. Godwin High School: $8,300 — To travel to national parks in Alaska to observe the impact of climate change on the environment and topography.

Erin Daniel, Quioccasin Middle School: $11,000 — To visit some of the healthiest places on Earth — Spain and Costa Rica — to bring back new habits and ideas that promote health and wellness.

Chesterfield County

Brett Chonko, Clover High School : $12,000 — To improve his knowledge and proficiency of the Spanish language by visiting regions of Argentina and Caribbean that feature difficult, distinct Spanish dialects.

Keenan Entsminger, James River High School: $12,000 — To trace the footsteps of the 246th Coastal Artillery Unit from the mountains of Virginia to the Islands of the Pacific.

Alexander Godschalk, Old Hundred Elementary School: $11,300 — To explore early forms of theatre by studying Commedia dell’arte and mask-making in Florence, Italy, and by engaging in Shakespearean theatre in England and Virginia.

Meredith Jordan, Manchester Middle School: $12,000 — To engage in diverse school community populations in Central and South America to help develop multicultural perspectives in the classroom.

Pamela Rockenbach Plahs, Swift Creek Middle School: $8,300 — To gain a deeper understanding of the Holocaust and to explore the courageous decisions the “Righteous Among the Nations” made to help rescue Jews by traveling to historic sites in Europe.

Hanover County

Lisa Cocke, Liberty Middle School: $9,400 — To visit a community in Ireland that has successfully designed programs that help transition individuals with Autism to post-secondary employment opportunities through immersion and integration.

Matthew Gray, Atlee High School: $11,100 — To study strength and conditioning concepts and philosophies of the United States Air Force Academy, the U.S. Olympic organiza- tion and the All Blacks Rugby Team by traveling to Colorado and New Zealand.

Mariah Jezek, Cool Spring Elementary School: $11,300 — To observe autism therapy practices in North America, Australia and Europe.

Nathan Morrison, Atlee High School: $12,000 — To study the ways European economics, religion, and politics influenced independence movements in the Americas by traveling to Spain, Britain and Chile.

Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice

Roy Mitchell Jr., Yvonne B. Miller High School: $11,800 — To learn more about Kente cloth and the similarities in culture between African-American and Hispanic students through travel to Ghana.