FLORENCE, Ala. — Florence City Schools Superintendent Dr. Jimmy Shaw received the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Excellence in Educational Leadership Award at the May school board meeting. Dr. Shaw said receiving the award would not have been possible without the University of Alabama's nomination.

According to the UCEA, the national award is presented to school administrators who have made significant contributions to the improvement of administrator preparation. This distinguished school administrator should demonstrate an exemplary record of supporting school administrator preparation efforts. The award provides a unique mechanism for UCEA universities to build goodwill and recognize the contributions of practitioners to the preparation of educational leaders.

The UCEA said Dr. Shaw collaborated with the doctoral program in Education Leadership and made significant contributions to preparing aspiring school leaders by giving guest talks to new admits in student orientation, giving keynote speeches, and serving as a panelist in the annual C. John Tarter Conference in Educational Administration; these examples and much more helped to influence the UCEA’s decision to honor Dr. Shaw.

The UCEA explained further that in his talks and teachings, Dr. Shaw shared informative and valuable tacit knowledge. The council added that Dr. Shaw demonstrated how he used research to lead the district and inspired students to learn and work hard to prepare themselves to lead better in the future.