Northeast High School alum Ziz Abdur-Ra’oof will return to the stage to emcee the 37th annual Excellence in Education Awards later this week and have the honor of announcing the 2023 Anne Arundel County Public Schools Teacher of the Year.
Abdur-Ra’oof is no stranger to AACPS. After graduating from Northeast, where he was a three-sport standout, and the University of Maryland and going on to play for the National Football League’s Kansas City Chiefs, Abdur-Ra’oof has spent years as what he calls a “performance coach,” imparting his lived experience to students in Anne Arundel County and beyond to propel them to be successful.
His NFL career was cut short due to injury, but his love for education and supporting students and educators have lived on through his consulting and coaching work throughout the years. He currently lives in Michigan.
The Excellence in Education Awards program begins at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 20, and will be held at the Live! Event Center at Arundel Mills. It is sold out, but those without tickets can watch it live on AACPS’ YouTube channel.
Abdur-Ra’oof wrote and published his first book, “Accelerate: A Guided Playbook for Young Dreamers, Scholars, Artists & Athletes” in October 2020 and is working on his second book.