Pontiac instructor wins program's $100K grand prize for teaching excellence
Jakkar AimeryPontiac — A Pontiac high school teacher has been named winner of a $100,000 grand prize recognizing his excellence in skilled trades education, Harbor Freight Tools for Schools officials announced Tuesday.
Juwan Willis, an automotive instructor at Oakland Schools Technical Campus Northeast, was named winner of the 2023 Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence during a ceremony in Pontiac.
He receives $30,000 for himself and the remaining $70,000 will go toward his skilled trades school, which according to its website is "designed for any student who wants to graduate high school with industry certifications, on-the-job experiences, business connections, and college credits."
"I strive to be an educator that reaches students where they are in order to inspire them to reach for goals previously thought to be unattainable," Willis wrote in his prize application.
After dropping out of high school, Willis returned to an alternative school, where a counselor convinced him he could make a living through his hobby of working on cars, according to a biography.
For 20 years, he worked in the automotive industry and earned credentials, including an ASE Master+ General Motors World Class Technician status while managing a dealership.
Paul Galbenski, dean of Oakland Schools Technical Campus Northeast, told The Detroit News early Tuesday the grand prize award is "a game changer for our students, Mr. Willis and for our automotive technology program."
In 2020, an instructor at the school was named a $50,000 prize winner, he added.
Galbenski said the $70,000 won Tuesday will be used to bring in "specialized equipment" as Willis works to develop technical skills and the credentialing of students to work on electrical vehicles.
Seven years ago, the prize was created to recognize excellent high school skilled trades teachers, "a group of educators who are frequently overlooked and underappreciated," a Harbor Freight representative said.
Since its beginning, the HFTS program has awarded $7 million to more than 130 teachers and their schools’ programs, as its mission has included increasing understanding, support and investment in skilled trades education in public high schools across the country, officials said.
"There is a growing shortage of skilled trades professionals in the United States," said Danny Corwin, executive director of HFTS, in a statement. "These incredible teachers are educating the next generation of skilled tradespeople through inventive, hands-on programs. We are grateful for the work they do every day in classrooms across the country."
The prize was started in 2017 by Eric Smidt, owner and founder of Harbor Freight Tools.
The process generated more than 1,000 applicants this year and included three rounds of judging by an independent panel of experts in education, industry, nonprofits and philanthropy.
Overall, 25 public high school skilled trades teachers across the U.S. were slated to win a portion of $1.5 million in cash prizes Tuesday.
The winners teach a variety of skilled trades, including construction, carpentry, plumbing, welding, automotive repair, agricultural mechanics, advanced manufacturing and industrial technology.
Willis was among three winners this year from Michigan. The others were David Barresi, a carpentry teacher at Frankfort High School in Frankfort, and Jeff Webb, a high school manufacturing teacher at Southern Michigan Center for Science and Industry.
They both netted $50,000 — $15,000 for themselves and $35,000 for their school’s program, officials said.
Applications for the annual award will reopen in March.
jaimery@detroitnews.com