Two high school skilled trades teachers from Northeast Georgia are finalists in a national teaching competition. If they win, it could reap big rewards for them and their students.
Rodney Presley and Dave Darden are competing for the Harbor Freight Tools for Schools annual Prize for Teaching Excellence. They’re among three Georgia finalists and 61 nationwide still in the $100,000 grand-prize winning competition. Presley is an HVACR and construction teacher at Lanier College & Career Academy in Gainesville. Darden teaches automotive service technology at Cedar Shoals High School in Athens. The other Georgia finalist is Jody Kemp from Peach County High School in Fort Valley.
All of the finalists are vying for a share of more than $1 million in cash prizes.
“Despite the dramatic need for a new generation of workers, research has shown that most U.S. high school students do not have access to high-quality skilled trades programs,” says Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Executive Director Danny Corwin. He says the goal of the prize is to highlight some of the most outstanding programs in the country and “celebrate teachers who are making a big difference in the lives of students.”
NEGA finalists
Reading over his competition bio it’s clear, Rodney Presley is one of those teachers making a difference. Presley was running his own HVAC company “when he saw first-hand the desperate need for highly skilled trade workers and began teaching to remedy that.”
His students showcase their skills by competing in national SkillsUSA events. They build products for sale in the school’s MetalWood design shop and construct a tiny house. Students also participate in an industry “signing day,” where they commit to careers in the trades. This past year along, nine of Presley’s students signed with employers, according to Harbor Freight.
For advanced students, Presley leads a county-wide “Habitat High” program in partnership with the local Habitat for Humanity. He also helped host a Skills Challenge for students with Georgia’s Association of General Contractors.
Darden, too, is using his expertise in the field to help students in the classroom. He incorporates his 35 years of experience as a master automotive technician into his courses. To hone his teaching skills, Darden obtained a master’s degree in workforce education in 2019 and will graduate with his Ed.S this fall.
Darden’s program at Cedar Shoals is ASE/NATEF-certified — a top industry standard. This year, his advanced students converted a former SWAT truck into a fully operational food truck. They also transformed two school buses into bookmobiles for their school district.
Darden was a finalist for last year’s Prize for Teaching Excellence.
Round two
An independent panel of judges selected the finalists from among a field of more than 700 who applied. The finalists are from 30 states. They’ll now advance to the second round of competition. Judges will narrow down the field to 18 winners who will receive cash prizes.
The Smidt Foundation funds the awards. Harbor Tools owner Eric Smidt started the foundation to advance skilled trades education in U.S. high schools. Corwin says he hopes other communities will be inspired to create similar programs for their own high school students.
The top three grand prize winners will each receive $100,000, with $30,000 going to the winning teacher and $70,000 to their schools’ trade programs. The foundation will award the 15 additional winners $50,000, with $35,000 going to each of their schools and $15,000 to each teacher.
The winners will be announced in late October. For a complete list of finalists, click here.
