Spivey receives the Tennessee CTE Pioneer Award

February 16, 2018

Melinda Spivey

On January 13, 2018, the Tennessee Department of Education and the Career and Technical Education division presented Melinda Spivey, Smith County Schools CTE Director, the Tennessee CTE Pioneer Award. This award was given at the Musician’s Hall of Fame during the Legislative Breakfast as part of the Tennessee Career and Technical Education Director’s Winter Meeting.

Spivey was first nominated by her colleagues to represent the Upper Cumberland region in the fall. From there, her application advanced to represent Middle Tennessee. Mrs. Spivey was chosen among the three region finalist from East, Middle, and West as the 2018 Tennessee recipient.

The Pioneer Award is given to one CTE director in Tennessee each year. This award was established to recognize those CTE directors which have demonstrated extraordinary leadership in their home county and at the state or national level. In order to receive this award, the CTE director should have five (5) years or less experience as the CTE director.

“It was such an honor and I was definitely surprised. There were so many qualified candidates for this award.” Spivey said. “This is not an award for things I’ve done. It’s about our CTE programs, our teachers, and most importantly, our students. This is a recognition for our entire CTE team countywide and I am super proud of them.”

One of the things Spivey was recognized for was the initiation and implementation of the annual Smith County Schools Career Day. With the support of the Director of Schools, she invited the Smith County Chamber of Commerce and the Smith County Mayor’s office to participate in this annual event alongside the school system. This event serves all students in 7-12 grade for Smith County and allows them to explore possible post-secondary and career options multiple times during their school tenure.

Her application included letters of recommendation compiled from industry partners, colleagues, teachers, parents, and the Director of Schools.

“In my professional encounters with Melinda, I have seen an individual who believes first and foremost that CTE education must be student centered,” states Diane Bennett, a colleague.

Brian Smith, project manager for Vulcan, appreciates the fact that Mrs. Spivey has reached out to various industries including Vulcan to explore ways our teachers can prepare students to not just be “workers” in the workforce but “qualified workers.”

A teacher, Taylor Key, in Smith County states, “She comes from a strong CTE background and was a Family and Consumer Science teacher herself, so I always trust her guidance.”

Mrs. Spivey works directly with other CTE Directors in the Upper Cumberland. She values this study group. They work as a unified team and spend much time together developing new and innovative programs and opportunities such that all students in the Upper Cumberland may benefit. Teresa Johnson, the CTE Director from Overton County provided a letter of recommendation. She said, “Mrs. Spivey is one of the most dedicated, professional, and successful educators/supervisors I know. She cares deeply for her profession, her students, her coworkers, her district, her schools and staff, and her community.”

Mrs. Spivey’s love for CTE began in high school where she was very involved in CTE programs, especially FACS and FCCLA. Then, it was known as Home Economics and FHA/HERO. She was very active and served as a state officer. She began her career at Gordonsville High School as a Family and Consumer Science teacher. Since then, she has worked as a FACS teacher and Assistant Principal at Station Camp High School and a principal at Forks River Elementary. Currently, she is the Supervisor of Instruction for 1-12, Primary Testing Coordinator, and CTE Director for Smith County. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Human Ecology Education, a master’s degree in Instructional Leadership, and an Educational specialist degree in Curriculum and Instruction all from Tennessee Tech. She is married to Rick Spivey and they have three children, Madison (19), Cameron (16), and Merissa(13).

Mrs. Spivey will represent Tennessee at the regional level in Kentucky. In addition, she will also represent the Tennessee delegation at the ACTE conference in San Antonio, TX.

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