Kenyan teacher Peter Tabichi, center, reacts after winning the $1 million Global Teacher Prize in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, March 24, 2019. Tabichi is a science teacher who gives away 80 percent of his income to the poor in the remote Kenyan village of Pwani. Last Updated Sunday, March 24, 2019 3:00PM EDT
"I feel great. I can't believe it. I feel so happy to be among the best teachers in the world, being the best in the world," he told The Associated Press after his win. "At times, whenever I reflect on the challenges they face, I shed tears," he said of his students, adding that his win will help give them confidence.
In his acceptance speech, Tabichi said his mother died when he was just 11 years old, leaving his father, a primary school teacher, with the job of raising him and his siblings alone.