The Whit King, Jr. Awards
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Katrina H. Smith, Brewbaker Technology Magnet School
2024 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Personal Finance Award Winner Katrina H. Smith is the recipient of the 2024 Whit King, Jr., Excellence in the Teaching of Personal Finance Award. She serves as a Business and Marketing Education teacher and Work Based Learning Coordinator at Brewbaker Technology Magnet School in Montgomery, AL.
Ms. Smith’s innovative approach to teaching personal finance has had a lasting impact on her students. She integrates personal finance into all her classes through simulations, real-world connections, guest speakers, project-based learning, and technology applications. Her commitment to empowering students with financial literacy is evident in the numerous state awards her students have earned in the Stock Market Game, Economics Challenge, and Personal Finance Challenge where her team of students represented Alabama in the 2024 national championship. Principal Jason Norred states, “As I watched Ms. Smith work with those students, I saw her dedication for all her students to be better, wiser, consumers. She provided each of them with an opportunity that they are still talking about.” Ms. Smith's exceptional teaching skills and her unwavering dedication to her students make her a deserving recipient of this award. She exemplifies the award criteria and will continue to leave her own legacy of making a difference in the lives of her students. Valerie Thornton of Central High School
2023 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Personal Finance Award Winner Mrs. Thornton is an outstanding business finance and marketing teacher who works tirelessly to build relationships with her students while equipping them with the skills they need to become successful adults. Her colleagues state that she demonstrates passion and enthusiasm while motivating and challenging her students in the classroom through the use case studies, video creation, debate, role-plays, student-led experiential learning opportunities, and participation in academic competitions. She is an inspiration to the students. As a result, her students have achieved outstanding success both in and out of the classroom. She has taught some of the toughest classes but still managed to provide her students with an understanding of personal finance that will enable them to make responsible decisions as they enter the real world. Mrs. Thornton states, “My mission is to educate, empower, and affirm youth in their life goals. Teaching has allowed me to work toward this mission. I would like to set the example that personal and professional goals can be achieved through planning and diligence. I strive to use my influence get students excited about learning and participating in the world around them. I evaluate myself daily, weekly, monthly and at the end of each nine-week grading period to determine how I can improve and modify my instructional techniques. Educators should have an ‘always learning attitude’ for their students to be successful.”
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Megan Cole, Homewood High School
2024 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award Winner Megan Cole is the winner of the 2024 Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award. This award recognizes Ms. Cole’s dedication to transforming the way students experienced and engaged with economics while she served as an AP Macroeconomics teacher at Homewood High School. She is now the Director of AP Macroeconomics at the College Board.
Ms. Cole’s approach to teaching economics goes beyond traditional methods. She worked tirelessly to change the reputation of economics as “boring” or too focused on math. Through hands-on simulations, active learning, and collaborative work, she brought the real world into her classroom. For example, her innovative zoo design activity let students experience scarcity and decision-making in real time as they navigated competing needs for land and resources. Ms. Cole connected economics to the world outside the classroom. She started every day with discussions on current economic events. By doing this, she helped students understand how economics influences politics, policymaking, and daily life. Her passion for teaching is evident. This award is a testament to the lasting impact she has had on her students' understanding of economics and real-world connections. Carlos Kyle Gillespie from Sparkman High School 2023 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award Winner Mr. Gillespie stimulates an integrated learning atmosphere by incorporating a variety of resources, interactives, simulations, podcasts, and competitions to set the tone for economics being a relatable class where students see the continuing relevance of economics and “real-world” connections. In addition to his classes at Sparkman High School, Mr. Gillespie has served as an Econiful Ambassador, taught several online AP Macro reviews sessions for students across the state through A+ College Ready, was a table leader in the A+ College Ready AP Macro Mock Reading, and has worked with other teachers on how to accurately the score AP exams. His colleagues describe him as an accomplished, compassionate, and admirable individual. He is extraordinarily talented at connecting with his students and educating them in creative ways. Mr. Gillespie states, “I consider myself very lucky to teach AP macro and on-level economics. The concepts and economic way of thinking are incredibly relatable and useful to students in both their current and future lives.” |
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Margaret Ann Praytor of Hartselle High School
2022 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Personal Finance Award Winner "Ms. Praytor currently serves as the personal finance and sports marketing teacher at our school. In this role, she provides much needed support for our students as they learn about various marketing techniques and personal finance essentials. Ms. Praytor works tirelessly to help students develop skills needed to be successful in the classroom as well as in life. Her deep passion for education is transferred to students, teachers, and community members.
Ms. Praytor is a skilled professional who quickly gains the confidence of students, teachers, parents, and colleagues. They view her more as a valuable resource. She consistently strives to ensure a quality education for all students. She certainly has a unique gift of creating a culture of engaging students and holding them to high expectations. She does an exceptional job of relating concepts learned in class to real-world experiences. I have found Ms. Praytor to be dedicated in all aspects of her life. She is committed, caring, and competent. Her work ethic and passion for student learning are second to none." Dr. Brad Cooper, Principal
Chris Dobbins of Tuscaloosa County High School
2021 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Personal Finance Award Winner 
"His dedication to teach students the content of computer courses as well as the materials related to careers and personal finance stands out among his peers. He has students use multiple programs and resources to understand the dynamics of personal finances and how they work within a larger framework of our economy. " Principal Daniel Dickens, Tuscaloosa County High Pictured: Chris Dobbins with Professor Robert Nielsen from UA's College of Human Environmental Sciences. |
Sara Howard of Decatur High School
2022 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award Winner "Mrs. Howard is organized and prepared each day. She has high expectations for her students and ensures that each student is met with an engaging and rigorous learning experience when they enter her classroom. One specific activity that Mrs. Howard enjoys each year is having her students run a meeting as the Federal Open Market Committee and suggest monetary policy changes at the end. This activity leads to a fiscal policy discussion based on those results.
Mrs. Howard’s classroom is a welcoming place where students are challenged yet feel very comfortable and safe. Students are often observed working in collaborative groups and participating in academic conversations and discussions leading to learning. Her success rate in receiving qualifying AP scores range from fifty to sixty-seven percent and this is a tribute to her continued professional learning and leading her students through rigor and high expectations." Leslie C. Russell, Principal
Dennis Weaver of Ramsay High School
2021 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award Winner 
"His willingness to engage our scholars this year with more innovative lessons and concepts related to Economics was displayed through various virtual lesson and instructional activities. Mr. Weaver exemplifies initiative and dedication through established stakeholder collaboration by creating economic workshops with valued community partners. Mr. Weaver is a mentor for Advanced Economics and International Baccalaureate Diploma Program scholars who purse a higher level of academic rigor. His level of content mastery provides confidence for our scholars seeking high attainment within this content strain. " Micah G. Kemp, Assistant Principal Pictured: Dennis Weaver with Dr. Carolyn Russell-Walker, Principal |
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Loren Springer of Bob Jones High School
2020 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award Winner "It’s because her passion and energy and knowledge about how students learn best is top notch and she doesn’t ever -- ever -- take a break from finding the best resources and the best instructional practices for her students. To truly describe a teacher like Mrs. Springer is difficult because her craft sometimes cannot be put into words, and often times it is best observed by being present in her classroom and seeing the students come in and greet Mrs. Springer and excitedly ask what they are doing each day. That’s where I see the impact of teachers like Mrs. Springer, when their students want to know what they’re doing before the teacher can even tell them."
Loren Spring is pictured with Sylvia Lambert, Bob Jones High School Principal |
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Jane Schaefer of Vestavia Hills High School
2019 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award Winner "The Whit King Award is for an inspirational and innovative applicant who promotes excellence in K-12 economic education. I cannot think of a teacher more qualified or more deserving than Jane Schaefer. Mrs. Schaefer holds herself to the same standard to which she holds her students—she works every day to be better than she was the day before. She pushes herself to grow alongside her students, and she has raised the standard of excellence at Vestavia Hills High School. Teachers like Mrs. Schaefer make the teaching profession great!"
Jane Schaefer is pictured with Jim Creamer, Chair of ACEE's Board of Directors |
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Suzanne Bailey of Virgil Grissom High School
2018 The Whit King, Jr. Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award Winner "Rarely do even the best teachers have that ability to infuse rigor and demand the highest quality of work from each of their students. Suzanne demonstrated that ability as I observed her utilize the standards of differentiated learning so that even the students who struggle the most in her classroom were able to make progress. She clearly demonstrated her passion for economics as she engaged her students with student-centered and inquiry-based teaching strategies regarding the concept of scarcity when examining the Industrial Period of the late 19th century."
"Suzanne understands that in order for students to be successful, teachers need to improve their craft as a professional. That is why she is devoted in developing, implementing, and sustaining quality professional development programs for teachers across the state of Alabama." Suzanne Bailey is pictured with Whit King, Jr.'s son, Peyton King |