Two Cache County School District teachers will be inducted into the new Utah Financial Education Hall of Fame Monday, June 10.
Rick Cox, sixth grade teacher at Wellsville Elementary, has been selected for the Personal Finance Educator of the Year Award, the highest of the five awards given.
Tracey Jenson, from Green Canyon High School, will receive the Student Empowerment Award.
According to Brittany Griffin at the Utah Office of State Treasurer, these teachers were selected for their work to empower students through financial education.
The two were selected out of 75 nominations from community members throughout Utah, according to Griffin.
Cox, Jenson and the other award winners will be recognized at the $tart $mart Teacher Summit, June 10.
The summit, put on by the Utah Jump$tart Coalition, is a full day professional development training focused on financial and economic education.
The coalition, a group of organizations committed to the financial education of youth, along with Utah Treasurer Marlo Oaks and the Utah State Board of Education, announced the hall of fame’s launch in April.
“The Utah Financial Education Hall of Fame celebrates the unsung heroes whose efforts shape the future of our youth by empowering them with critical financial knowledge and skills,” Oaks said in a press release April 4.
Oaks said the teachers and administrators chosen have made it a priority to ensure students leave the classroom knowing how money and the economy work.
According to those who nominated them, Cox and Jenson have done just that.
One comment said Cox has spent 20 years making education fun, engaging and impactful.
“His classroom financial system is one small part of what he does day in and day out to teach valuable lessons to his students that they can use once they leave his classroom and enter the world as an adult.”
A comment from one of his students described the method Cox uses to teach finances, which models real life, complete with jobs students apply for and salaries with fake money.
The money earned throughout the year as they do their jobs can be spent at the end of year auction.
Brother and fellow teacher Greg Cox described him as creative.
“He goes out of his way to make his classroom a fun and engaging place so students can leave school with positive memories that they will remember their whole life,” said Greg.
Jenson will receive the Student Empowerment Award, which goes to an educator, “who has demonstrated exceptional commitment to empowering students to take control of their financial futures.”
The award celebrates educators who teach financial concepts but also support students in setting and working towards financial goals.
McKenzie Walsh, a former student from Jenson’s time at Sky View High School, was one of those who nominated Jenson.
Walsh said Jenson’s class inspired her to pursue a degree in Family Finance and become a financial counselor.
“Her class exercises and activities helped give me a taste of what adulthood would be like,” said Walsh.
Jenson said she is honored to be receiving the award, especially for a topic so important to her students.
She said she tries to empower her students through hands on experience, and by focusing on the simple things like budgeting, saving and building credit.
“It’s important to learn the basics,” said Jenson. “They can make simple mistakes that will haunt them for the rest of their lives, or they can develop good habits that will benefit them as adults.”
The other three awards being given are the Lifetime Achievement Award, the self-nominated Innovative Personal Finance Curriculum Award and the administrator Financial Education Champion Award.
