Woodrow Price continues to be recognized for the impact he is having on students.

Price, a first grade teacher at Sherman Avenue Elementary School, was his school’s 2017 teacher of the year and was recently nominated for a LifeChanger of the Year Award.

He now has another feather in his cap as March 2 he was honored as one of the inaugural winners of the Mississippi Excellence in Education President’s Award.

“I feel honored for the work I am doing with the Vicksburg Warren School District especially at Sherman Avenue,” Price said. “I hope it can serve as an inspiration to make other people do things that were outside what they were hired to do.”

Price has been teaching for 11 years including the last three at Sherman Avenue. His impact on students at Sherman extends beyond the classroom. He started a Real Me Read program, where men from the community come and read to students.

The program started in 2015 and once a month positive role models come and read to students at the school.

Price has also led an initiative to collect Christmas presents for students at the school and has seen the program grow from helping a single class to giving a present to every student in the school in just three years.

“Woodrow Price III receives the President’s Award as an example of how one educator can make a difference in the lives of so many children with teaching growing out of his own experiences as a student,” said Mississippi Association of Educators President Joyce Helmick who introduced Price. “Woodrow reveals to his colleagues and students that he failed four grades, which did not deter him from reaching his goal of an educated young person who thankfully chose education as his career.  Not only has this young man achieved personal success, he has discovered his influence can help his students have their own personal successes.”

Price was recognized along with nationally syndicated cartoonist Marshall Ramsey, Friend of Education Award; Lisa Shaw, Excellence in Education Middle School Teacher Award; Jennifer Bourbonais, Excellence in Education Elementary School Teacher Award; Heather Ferrell, Excellence in Education High School Teacher Award, New Albany High School; Colbry Lathan, Excellence in Education, Education Support Professional (ESP) Award, Okolona High School; Jessica Branning, Excellence in Education Teaching Inspiration Award, Union Middle School; Vickie McAnally, Excellence in Education Teaching Inspiration Award, Rankin Elementary School; and Dr. Pamela Brace, Excellence in Education Higher Education award, Mississippi State University.

“It was our honor to recognize a number of Mississippians who have dedicated their lives and careers to making sure our students have every opportunity to succeed to their highest potential,” Helmick said. “We wanted to make sure that the atmosphere of the evening was befitting their status, so we created a formal event to showcase their achievements.”