CAZENOVIA — The Business Teachers Association of New York State (BTANYS) recently named Christina New of Cazenovia High School (CHS) as the 2022-23 Clinton A. Reed Outstanding Business Educator Award recipient.
The award recognizes a business teacher who has made significant contributions to his or her school district as well as the profession of business education.
New, who has been teaching in the Cazenovia Central School District (CCSD) since 2006, is the CHS Career & Technical Education (CTE) Department leader and the school’s certified Work-Based Learning (WBL) coordinator.
Through the WBL program, which New launched in 2020, eligible seniors spend part of the school week working in local businesses that align with their career interests and learning from industry mentors.
During the 2022-23 school year, New also taught personal finance, leadership, accounting, entrepreneurship, and a seventh-grade business exploratory class. This coming school year, she will also offer a career and financial management class.
Throughout her time at CCSD, New has launched several new classes, district events, and programs, many of which involve collaborations with the local business community.
She introduced the Burton Street Elementary School “Dollar Dog” savings program, Shark Tank Night, the Mr. Caz pageant, the Empower “Mad City Money” financial simulation, the EVERFI financial simulation, the STEM-based extracurricular club Caz Creates, guest speakers from AmeriCU Credit Union, the middle school leadership mentoring program, and a unique partnership with Cazenovia-based landscaping company Scholars Landscaping.
Additionally, New and CTE teacher Sara McDowell started a CTE National Technical Honor Society chapter at the high school.
New trains teachers in Cazenovia and across the state on the Teach Empowered entrepreneurship curriculum and advises the CHS Youth Activation Committee, a group of students that helps market the school’s Unified Sports teams, which join students with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team to train, play together, and compete.
This coming school year, she will also be serving as co-advisor to the student-led organization Project C.A.F.E. and helping to run the Laker Locker, a student thrift store.
The educator also served on the board of the Greater Cazenovia Area Chamber of Commerce, which provided students with scholarship and community service opportunities.
“Christina New is innovative, creative, proactive, and resourceful,” said CHS Principal Molly Hagan. “She is everything as a teacher that we want for our career and technical education students. Christina is a leader in the building and in the Cazenovia community. She has been instrumental in introducing new programs and courses to our CTE department. She’s an invaluable member of the Cazenovia Central School District. The best thing about Christina, however, is her love and dedication to students. She is a fun, engaging, and compassionate teacher, [and] she excels at relationships.”
New, who was named the CCSD Teacher of the Year in 2021, said the most rewarding aspect of teaching business is her students.
“We are a family in the business department, and seeing the students’ success even after high school is the best part of the job,” she said. “I keep in touch with a lot of the alumni through the CHS Alumni Network on LinkedIn that my classes started several years ago.”
Outside the classroom, New is the BTANYS Syracuse region director and has recently become involved in legislative advocacy on behalf of BTANYS.
She said she was completely surprised and very honored by the news that the association had selected her as its Outstanding Business Educator Award recipient.
“I was notified this summer that I was nominated by a few colleagues on the state board,” she said. “I am the legislative director for NYS, and my team and I have been taking trips to DC and meeting with area legislators this summer to advocate for mandatory financial literacy in schools in NYS. We are so close to being the 24th state [to require it. It’s] super exciting.”
New will be presented her award at the BTANYS annual conference on Oct. 20, 2023, at The Century House in Latham, New York.
“Christina New has left a mark on both the district and the countless students she has guided over the years,” said CCSD Superintendent Christopher DiFulvio. “Her commitment to fostering a dynamic learning environment has empowered students to develop not only essential business skills but also a strong sense of confidence. She has exemplified the qualities of an exceptional educator. She is well respected throughout our community because of her great connection with local businesses.”
The BTANYS is a voluntary professional organization that provides advocacy, professional development, networking, and support for its members to “effectively educate today’s students for tomorrow’s global economy.”
For more information, visit btanys.org.
