Derrick M. Saenz-Payne, a teacher at Ceres High School, has been awarded a James Madison Fellowship by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation of Alexandria, Va.
A total of 53 fellowships were awarded.

The fellowships support further study of American history by college graduates who aspire to become teachers of American history, American government and social studies, as well as by experienced secondary school teachers of the same subjects.

Named in honor of the fourth U.S. president and acknowledged as the father of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the fellowship will fund up to $24,000 of Saenz-Payne's course of study toward a master's degree. That program must include a concentration on courses on the history and principles of the Constitution.