RHS skills-trades teacher honored with $50,000 Harbor Freight Tools Teaching Excellence award
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
RONAN — A skills-trades teacher from Ronan High School was recently named winner of the 2021 Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence, receiving $50,000 as part of a $1 million prize award given to teachers nationwide.
On Monday, Oct. 25, in a surprise all-class assembly held in the RHS gymnasium, agricultural mechanics instructor Casey Lunceford was presented a check for $50,000 joining 14 other national prize winners, and three Grand Prize winners, who each received $100,000 as part of the annual award.
As part of the prize, Lunceford – the very first ever finalist from Montana – will be awarded personally $15,000 and a customized U.S. General mechanics tool cart, while $35,000 will be allocated to the RHS agricultural mechanics program.
Lunceford has been teaching agricultural mechanics at RHS for the last three years and also serves as an officer in the Montana Association of Agriculture Educators and Vice President ciation of Career and Technology Educators.
In a press release issued by Harbor Freight Lunceford noted, “My favorite part of being a skilled trades teacher is watching my students learn not just the hands-on techniques, but also how they can make a living at those trades.”
With 10 years of owning and running a home company and sawmill, Lunceford has relied on his industry experience and a master’s degree in Agriculture Education to help instruct his students. Lunceford also credits FFA for teaching him about work ethic, communication, and lessons in mechanics, sales, and agronomy that he puts to use every day while working in the industry.
Lunceford’s curriculum covers a variety of real-life subjects, including welding, small engines, electrical wiring and hydraulics. The variety allows students to explore many options, and aligns them with industry internships with mechanics, carpenters and ranchers to set them up for career readiness.
“There is no better way to know if a student is ready or has a desire to be in an industry than to spend time actually doing the hands-on work.” said Lunceford.
Since joining the program, Lunceford has brought the graduation rate for skilled trades education up from 90 precent to 100 precent.
In 2017, the Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence program was established to advance excellent skilled trades education in public high schools across America along by recognizing outstanding instruction and the teachers who inspire students to learn skills for life after graduation.
“Trades teachers are educating and developing the tradespeople of the future. We are honored and grateful to have the chance to shine a spotlight on these teachers’ amazing work,” said Eric Smidt, founder of the national tool retailer Harbor Freight Tools. “Many of the students in their classes today will become—as soon as next spring—the workers who keep our critical care infrastructure, our communication networks, our homes and cars up and running. The prize is our way of saying thank you to their teachers.”
The 2021 prize drew more than 700 applications from 49 states and included three rounds of judging, each by an independent panel of experts from industry, education, trades, philanthropy and civic leadership. The application process, which included responses to questions and a series of learning modules, was designed to solicit each teacher’s experience, insights and creative ideas about their approach to teaching and success in helping their students achieve excellence in the skilled trades.
In July, the field was narrowed to 61 finalists. The 43 finalists who were not named winners each receive a $1,000 gift card from Harbor Freight Tools.
“We are grateful that these outstanding winners and thousands of educators like them across the country are developing tomorrow’s skilled workforce,” said Smidt.
Lunceford intends to use the money to buy additional safety tools and update some old equipment.
“We have a lot of safety stuff to get caught up on,” said Lunceford. “New welding stuff, safety goggles and things like that. There are some things that are kind of old. Our air compressors are needing some help.”
Some new tools and equipment are also on the shopping list.
“We’ve got a chance to (now) try some stuff that we haven’t had yet,” said Lunceford.
