Each year, KEA earmarks over $40,000 for scholarships, which the association considers to be an investment in the future of the teaching profession in the Commonwealth. As part of that investment, the Dodson-Perkins Scholarships are awarded each year to members of the KEA Aspiring Educators. Eligible AE members must be a junior, senior, post-baccalaureate student or MAT candidate enrolled in a Kentucky college or university who intend to pursue a career as an educator in the Commonwealth.

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This year, the Membership, Organizing, Visibility and Engagement (MOVE) Committee chose four outstanding recipients of the Dodson-Perkins Aspiring Educators’ Scholarships, and each was awarded $1,000. Scholarship winners were announced at the DA in April.

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For recipient Preston Hill, a student at Murray State, the scholarship helps him achieve what he considers a calling and a dream. “This helps me do what I believe I was chosen to do,” Hill told the delegate assembly to loud applause. “The dream for me is to go back home to Webster County. That’s where I fell in love with teaching. Educators there showed me the ability teachers have to change people’s lives. I want to make that happen. There’s something special about the connection that students have with their educators, and I want to be a part of that process. I can’t thank you enough.”

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The other 2022 Dodson-Perkins winners are Nicholas Adkins from Salyersville, a Morehead State University graduate currently teaching in Magoffin County; Alyssa Bunch from Hustonville, who attends Campbellsville University; and Hannah McCrady from Caneyville. who attends Western Kentucky University.