Wiregrass Georgia Technical College Welding Instructor, Mike Day, received the 2020 Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Instruction, also known as Rick Perkins Instructor of the Year award.
 
The Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Instruction is awarded annually. This award is designed to recognize and honor technical college instructors who make significant contributions to technical education through innovation and leadership in their fields. Instructors are nominated for the Rick Perkins Award by their peers. Competition among instructors occurs at the college, regional, and state levels.
 
Two finalists participated in the interviews, they were: Mike Day (Welding Instructor- Coffee Campus), and Kiva Brownlee (Adult Education Instructor – Ben Hill-Irwin Campus).
 
Day was nominated by his peers throughout the college. He is described as “one who consistently performs above and beyond the call of duty. Mike's commitment to his students, his peers, the institution, and to the local employers is unparalleled. His pride in his work, his sense of duty, and his exemplary performance set the example for all faculty and staff. Overall, Mike is a champion of the Wiregrass mission of "workforce development."
 
When asked about his reaction to receiving this honor Mike Day responded, “I am so excited to represent Wiregrass as the Rick Perkins Instructor of the Year. I am humbled by all my peers who think so highly of me and our welding program. I have been shown tremendous support from our leadership, administration, and instructional team in everything I have done at Wiregrass right from the start.   I hope to represent our team in a manner that truly shows our passion for Technical Education. This honor has been the greatest in my teaching career. “   
 
Day also shared his teaching goals in the classroom and welding lab, “learning to weld is learning how to overcome your failures. Success is never final and failure is never fatal. It’s what you do when you fail at a weld that matters, you can’t stop success with a person who never gives up.   Always talk with every student, every day, find common ground and grow students’ talents.  At the end of the day, if we as instructors can share ethics, hard work, and build confidence, welding is the least of our worries.”   
Nicole West, Executive Director of Departmental Affairs, serves as the Rick Perkins Coordinator.
 
The following instructors were nominated and participated in the selection process for the instructor award (in alphabetical order): Fiifi Agyabeng-Dadzie (Biology Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Adann-Kennn Alexxandar (Adult Education Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Jessica Altman (Psychology Instructor- Ben Hill-Irwin Campus), Roy Bramley (Auto Collision and Sheet Metal Fabrication Instructor), Cabot Carlton (Welding Instructor – Ben Hill-Irwin Campus), Jesse Davis (Automotive Technology Program Coordinator – Ben Hill-Irwin Campus), Tim Drexler (Computer Information Systems Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Deanna Edwards (Business Education Instructor – Ben Hill-Irwin Campus), Julia Fountain (Adult Education Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Talarie Giddens (Esthetics Program Coordinator – Valdosta Campus), Garrett Hall (History Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Toby Heard (Automotive Repair Technology Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Karen Hutcheson (Cosmetology Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Cathy Leeman (English Instructor – Ben Hill-Irwin Campus), Jenay Lewis (Adult Education Services Instructor – Valdosta Campus), April Lott (Cosmetology Program Coordinator – Coffee Campus), Dora Nash (Associate of Science Nursing Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Mark Ponder (EMS/Paramedicine Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Jennifer Ray (Radiologic Technology Program Coordinator – Valdosta Campus), Wally Rewis (Welding Instructor – Area Director for Academic Affairs- Valdosta Campus), Jason Richardson (Speech Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Cherlyn Sands-Anderson (Adult Education Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Greta Smith (Criminal Justice Instructor – Coffee Campus), Kayla Tillman (Business Education Instructor – Coffee Campus), Valerie Tisby (Early Childhood Care  and Education Instructor – Ben Hill-Irwin Campus), Alison Watkins (Business Technology Instructor - Area Director for Academic Affairs – Valdosta Campus), Scott Watson (Air Conditioning Technology Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Kenya Wiggins (Sociology Instructor – Valdosta Campus), Tabitha Wilcox (Cosmetology Program Coordinator – Valdosta Campus), and Adrienne Young (Practical Nursing Instructor – Ben Hill-Irwin Campus)
 
Day will represent Wiregrass at the Regional interview competition in February at the Tifton campus of Southern Regional Technical College.  All college winners will represent their colleges in April at the state Rick Perkins and GOAL (student of the year program) awards event where the region winners and state winner will be announced.