Teacher who won USD 1M accused of shoplifting USD 14.99 blouse

She says she had returned another item and took the blouse in exchange. She's scheduled in court next month on a misdemeanour theft charge.

Edgecomb: An English teacher from Maine who won the USD one million Global Teacher Prize last year has been accused of shoplifting a blouse worth USD 14.99.

Nancie Atwell is founder of The Centre for Teaching and Learning in Edgecomb. She was selected from 1,300 applicants from 127 countries at a ceremony in Dubai with former President Bill Clinton in attendance. She said the money will go toward school improvements.

The Portland Press Herald reports security personnel saw Atwell browsing through a Damariscotta store March 28. The security officers say she removed the blouse from a hanger, rolled it up and placed it in a bag she was carrying.

Atwell says it was a misunderstanding. She says she had returned another item and took the blouse in exchange. She's scheduled in court next month on a misdemeanor theft charge.