Joe Brown, who has served 24 years, was given the 2011 Proudfoot Award for Outstanding School Board Member in Kentucky at the state school board's annual conference Friday in Louisville.
"I'm obviously delighted but very humbled," Brown said Tuesday. "I really had no idea I had been nominated."
In her nomination of Brown, PTO officer Tara Noe wrote that Brown is highly active at county schools, continually attending school events and visiting classrooms on teacher appreciation days.
"By leading and participating in such events, Mr. Brown can honestly say he has visited every classroom in every school, an accomplishment that makes him aware and knowledgable of what is going on in Garrard County Schools," Noe wrote. "This knowledge and interest lead to informed decisions and an ever-increasing credibility with his constituents."
Brown, who has chaired the school board for the past decade, also was given credit for helping Paint Lick Elementary School reach its National Blue Ribbon School status.
During Brown's time on the board, the county has built a new middle school, a new high school and three new elementary schools.
He also led three Garrard County superintendent searches and helped each new superintendent transition into the county, Noe's nomination said.
Brown said he does what he does because it's what school board members should do and "there is no other option but to do whatever we can to educate our kids."
"In my opinion, how well we educate our kids in Garrard County and in Kentucky is going to dictate the future for Kentucky," he said. "Education is just absolutely vital for our children today."
Garrard County Superintendent Donald Aldridge believes the award is well-deserved because Brown is a model school board member, not just for Garrard County, but for the state.
Even in Brown's acceptance speech, it was clear why he was chosen for the award, Aldridge said.
"He brought value to everyone else around him instead of just to himself, and that's why I think he is such a great board member," Aldridge said. "He connects with everyone and tries to bring value to everyone. He makes others around him strive to achieve."
Brown, who recently was re-elected to his seventh term as school board member, said the best part about his job is getting to see when policies and issues the board handles affect school children positively.
"When you see children benefiting from those things, that's a great thing," he said. "It's been a delightful experience."
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