Una Alumna Awarded Family And Consumer Sciences Teacher Of The Year

Jan. 30, 2020

Michelle Eubanks, UNA, at media@una.edu, 256.765.4392 or 256.606.2033

Michelle Eubanks, UNA, at meubanks@una.edu, 256-606-2033 or 256-765-4392 FLORENCE, AL - Heather Jones, a University of North Alabama alumna, has been named the Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher of the Year by the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences. The award recognizes teachers who use advanced techniques to provide students with an education in traditional areas of the Family and Consumer Sciences classroom. Jones has also been recently appointed to the National Coalition for Family and Consumer Sciences Education as the Association for Career and Technical Education - Family and Consumer Sciences Division Representative. Jones' program, "Perfect Platform: Using Family and Consumer Sciences to Teach Communication and Appropriate Use of Technology," combines technology and communication with the foundational Family and Consumer Sciences content to help students learn skills that are becoming more relevant as technologies advance. Part of Jones' program is to encourage students to use social media for written reflections. Almost 300 seventh-grade students have benefitted from this program thus far. "UNA prepared me to navigate all the curves my career path has taken - from not-for-profit to public education - and will continue to take in the future," she said. "My campus advisors were phenomenal professionals who made sure their students understood the importance of creativity, collaboration, and life-long learning. Because of UNA's investment in me, I am able to reach many others, and, hopefully, make the world a better place." Jones graduated summa cum laude in 2002 from the Human Environmental Sciences department, where she majored in Foods and Nutrition as well as Family Resource Management, with a minor in Business Administration and Honors in English. While at UNA, she was an active member of the Student Government Association Senate and earned the title of SGA Senator of the Year. Upon graduation, Jones received the Keller Key and was inducted as a member of the 2002 UNA Hall of Fame. About The University of North Alabama The University of North Alabama is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate and graduate degree programs through the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Human Sciences, and the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions. Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. UNA Athletics, a renowned collegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of the NCAA Division I's ASUN Big South Conference. The University of North Alabama is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age, or national origin. For more: www.una.edu and www.una.edu/unaworks/