Tennessee Educators Honored with Financial Literacy Awards

Tennessee Educators Honored with Financial Literacy Awards

by Shelli King, Director of Communications

Nashville, TN – This week the Tennessee Financial Literacy Commission honored three Tennessee educators for taking the lead in bringing financial education tools to their students. Kara Campbell, Cody Hawks, and Candiace Dandridge were each presented with the Tennessee Financial Literacy Commission Leadership Award by Treasurer David H. Lillard, Jr. at an event on Tuesday evening. Chris Holmes, a longtime TNFLC board member, was also honored with the Champion of Financial Literacy Award for his work in driving the success of the Commission’s programs since inception.

“Educators play many roles and take on many responsibilities –these individuals and their schools are going above and beyond,” said Treasurer Lillard. “And they do so because they know that these lessons have real life application, and they are dedicated to the whole well-being of their students, and their futures. We were pleased to honor these three educators for their commitment to financial literacy in their schools.”

Download the high-resolution photo
Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, Speaker Glen Casada, Sen. Jack Johnson, award recipient Cody Hawks, Treasurer David H. Lillard, Jr., and Gov. Bill Lee

Cody Hawks

Cody Hawks is a fifth grade teacher at Hillsboro School in Lieper’s Fork, TN. After attending one of the Commission’s Saturday Summits in Nashville, Mr. Hawks immediately enrolled his class in the Vault – Understanding Money online financial literacy program.

In addition to having his class complete the Vault program, Mr. Hawks has also instituted the My Classroom Economy system in his classroom, which has tied seamlessly with the district’s Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports system.

Download the high-resolution photo
Speaker Glen Casada, Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, award recipient Chris Holmes, Treasurer David H. Lillard, Jr., and Gov. Bill Lee

Chris Holmes

Chris Holmes, president and CEO of FirstBank, served on the TNFLC Board of Directors since inception, a total of eight years. He helped to create the foundation and drive the success of the programs.

During his time of service, the Commission trained more than 4,000 educators to teach Financial Fitness for Life and directly reached 25,000 students who have completed the Vault – Understanding Money program.