Holt High's Mindy Walker Named Alabama History Teacher Of The Year

HOLT, AL — Holt High School's Mindy Walker has been named the 2024 Alabama History Teacher of the Year by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

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The Tuscaloosa County School System (TCSS) says the award recognizes exceptional K-12 teachers from each state for their contributions to American history education.

“I have witnessed her share her love of history with students, making her lessons inviting, rigorous, and engaging,” Holt High Principal Daniel Dickenssaid. “Students leave her class knowing they are stronger students and genuinely have an appreciation for history.”

Originally from Pickens County, Walker has a Bachelor’s Degree in history with a minor in English. She also has a Masters of Arts in teaching history has been working to earn her Education Specialist Degree in Secondary History Education Curriculum.

Walker says she has passion for teaching tolerance and kindness through historical connections and lessons from the past. Her TCSS online profile says she does this by taking students on military hikes through battlefields that are a part of the nation’s personal history compared to other countries and global conflicts.

"I particularly feel led to share my knowledge of Holocaust history," she writes. "I have traveled to Germany, Poland, Austria, France, and the Czech Republic. I have visited many concentration camps and worked in the historical archives of many of these historical sites. I write curriculum lessons and contribute to two non-profit organizations in which I enjoy serving as a Teacher Ambassador for The Defiant Requiem Foundation in Washington D.C. and The Jewish Foundation for the Righteous which is based out of New Jersey.".

The award was presented to Walker at a meeting of the Alabama State Board of Education and she will now move on to the national level as a candidate for the 2024 National History Teacher of the Year Award.

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