Going Above and Beyond
The NAEHCY Awards
Each year, NAEHCY honors those whose efforts and expertise have had a positive and lasting impact on the education of youth experiencing homelessness. The NAEHCY Awards recognize professionals who go above and beyond their duties with a true passion and commitment to improving outcomes for homeless youth.
This year’s nominees (featured below) were all incredibly deserving and we thank those of you who nominated someone. It was difficult for our committee to deliberate and decide! Our 2025 Call for Nominations is now open. Nominate a deserving colleague by August 15, 2025.
McKinney-Vento Liaison of the Year
It was a NAEHCY first—the 2024 Liaison of the Year was awarded to a duo, Valerie Aguirre (pictured) and Jewelyn Kahele, Community Homeless Concerns Liaisons for the Hawaii Department of Education!
McKinney-Vento State Coordinator of the Year
Eric McGhee, the Grants Program Manager in the Federal Programs Division at the Georgia Department of Education, was awarded the 2024 McKinney-Vento State Coordinator of the Year!
Sandra Neese Lifetime Achievement Award
Dr. Jacqueline Brown-Pinkney, a nationally recognized school social worker with over 30 years of experience in Effingham County Schools (GA) and currently serving as Social & Emotional Learning Assistant Coordinator & Lead School Social Worker, was one of two awardees for lifetime achievement this year (another NAEHCY first!)
Sandra Neese Lifetime Achievement Award
Our second lifetime achievement awardee this year, Dr. Patricia A. Popp, is Virginia’s EHCY state coordinator, a clinical associate professor at the William & Mary School of Education, and a liaison to Virginia’s Department of Social Services for educational stability of students in foster care.