Harrison educator earns top state, district business education honors

Published 5:00 am Sunday, October 18, 2026

Harrison School District business teacher Molly Thurman has been named both the Arkansas Business Educator New Teacher of the Year and District Representative of the Year. The dual honors recognize her exceptional work in the classroom, her leadership with Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), and her dedication to hands-on student success.

“Honestly, I was shocked,” Thurman said of hearing her name called for both awards. “As a new teacher, you spend so much time focusing on your students, your classroom, and just trying to
do the best job you can that you don’t always stop to think about whether what you’re doing is making an impact beyond your classroom. Hearing my name called for both awards was incredibly humbling”.
Thurman attributes the recognition to a teaching approach that pairs traditional course content with practical life experience. From community service to leadership opportunities, she focuses
on bringing concepts like financial literacy, technology, and entrepreneurship to life.
“Students are constantly surrounded by businesses, technology, money, advertising, and entrepreneurship, so I try to connect what we’re learning to things they already see and experience,” Thurman explained. “I want students to see how these skills apply to their lives”.
That philosophy bore impressive fruits during her first year leading a new FBLA chapter. Under her guidance, students organized “Knitting for a Cause,” a project where members learned to knit hundreds of hats for local hospitals, nursing homes, and Arkansas Children’s Hospital. The chapter also gained national attention when two of Thurman’s students, Bellah Burns and Paisley Taylor, took home first place in the nation for Annual Chapter Activities.
The journey into business education was a natural fit for Thurman, whose mother is also a business teacher and FBLA adviser. Thurman’s own high school experience as an FBLA state officer helped lay the foundation for her teaching career. She credits her success to a strong support network, including her mother, her husband, supportive coworkers, her principal, and eager students.
Navigating the early challenges of the profession taught Thurman that effective teaching relies heavily on adaptability and connection.
“The biggest challenge was learning that there isn’t one perfect way to teach,” Thurman shared.
“I learned to be flexible, listen to my students, learn from the people around me, and adjust when something wasn’t working. Once students know that you genuinely care about them and
want them to succeed, you can accomplish so much more together”.
As she looks ahead to the upcoming school year, Thurman plans to expand real-world learning projects and continue building FBLA opportunities. For her, business education is vital to the
future of the local area.
“In a community like ours, those skills are especially important because our students are our future workforce and future business owners,” Thurman noted. “I want them to see that they don’t have to leave our community to be successful—they can also be the people who help our community grow”.
To anyone considering a career in education, Thurman offers encouraging advice: “Do it because you genuinely want to make a difference in students’ lives… Most importantly, remember that students don’t need a perfect teacher, they need a teacher who cares about them, believes in them, and is willing to keep showing up for them”.