Last week, Kailua High School teacher Chad Miller got a chance to explain his school’s innovative philosophy program to the Dalai Lama.

On Tuesday, Miller had President Barack Obama’s ear — if only for about a minute.

"I think it’s going to take me a couple years to figure out what’s happened to me the last few days," said Miller, Hawaii’s teacher of the year, who is in Washington, D.C., for the 2012 National Teacher of the Year conference.

Miller was at the White House on Tuesday with stellar teachers from every state for the presentation of the National Teacher of the Year Award, which went to middle school teacher Rebecca Mieliwocki of California.

Miller, wearing a maile lei, stood with teachers behind the president in the East Room for the announcement.

In an address, Obama lauded teachers nationwide for their work and said teachers are serving not just schools or students, but their country. "On behalf of the American people, thank you for everything you do," the president said.

Before Obama spoke, Miller and the other honored teachers were able to meet the president one on one and take a picture with him.

Miller said he jokingly invited the president to Kailua High, which is near where Obama spends Christmas with his family. The president laughed and said he would see whether he could make it.

Miller also briefly described Kailua High’s emphasis on philosophy and his own interest in helping students think critically and question the world around them.

He said the chance to talk about the program with the president was surreal.

"I really wanted to make sure we’re showing the people nationally what’s happening in Hawaii. There are lots of good things," Miller said.

On April 16, Miller got a chance to address the Dalai Lama when the Tibetan spiritual leader visited Kailua High School to speak to students and answer questions. The school was chosen for the visit because of its philosophy program, which Miller helped develop.

Miller, 34, an English teacher at the Windward Oahu school, said he’s overjoyed at being chosen as Hawaii’s teacher of the year because it has given him a chance to talk about his approach to teaching.

"The whole thing has been extremely rewarding. It’s really allowed me to reflect me on the last eight or nine years of becoming a teacher," he said. "It was a confirmation of what we’re doing is working."

This school year, Miller took on the role of "philosopher in residence" at Kailua High, providing instructional assistance to teachers looking to bring philosophical inquiry into their classrooms.

But Miller, who is completing his doctoral degree in education, is eager to get back into the classroom next school year.

"I just can’t wait to teach again," he said.