AFA Announces Nation’s Top STEM Educators
July 31, 2025 | By Susan Mallett
The Air & Space Forces Association (AFA), in partnership with Rolls-Royce, proudly announces the 2025 national winners of the Thompson-Mallett National Teacher of the Year award, recognizing three extraordinary educators for their innovative work in aerospace-focused STEM education.
First Place: Ashlie Smith
Taking top honors is Ashlie Smith, an 8th-grade physical science teacher at Cranbrook Kingswood Middle School for Girls in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. With a 24-year career steeped in creativity and dedication, Smith is a leader in aerospace education, empowering young women through hands-on scientific exploration and global collaboration.
Smith’s pioneering work includes leading student participation in the “Cubes in Space” and “Space for Teachers” programs, with over 40 student-designed experiments launched on sounding rockets and high-altitude balloons. Her students have even designed and flown propellant management devices and microgravity experiments aboard Zero-G flights.
In 2024, Smith co-led a STEM teacher workshop in Lagos, Nigeria, sparking a transcontinental classroom collaboration that connected students across cultures through shared science projects. Her leadership helped fly Nigerian student-designed toys in microgravity alongside American student experiments, showcasing the unifying power of STEM education.
“Aerospace isn’t just a content area; it’s a launchpad,” Smith said. “When every student sees their value in the mission, they don’t just learn science—they live it.”
Smith receives a $3,000 award and the prestigious diamond AFA National Teacher of the Year pin during the AFA’s National Convention and the Air, Space & Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Md., this September.
Second Place: Kala Grice-Dobbins
Securing second place is Kala Grice-Dobbins, a high school cybersecurity teacher at Madison County Career Tech Center in Huntsville, Ala. With nearly two decades of experience, Grice-Dobbins is a trailblazer in preparing students for the evolving demands of cybersecurity and technology careers, especially in underserved and rural communities.
She has secured over $100,000 in grants, enabling the purchase of cutting-edge equipment—from digital forensics kits to 3D printers—giving students direct access to real-world tools. Grice-Dobbins also developed a full-year cybersecurity curriculum based on AFA’s CyberPatriot program, with her student teams consistently reaching national semifinals and dominating state-level competitions.
Her efforts have empowered 81 percent of her students to earn at least one industry certification, with some going on to careers at the FBI and Amazon. Grice-Dobbins also mentors educators nationwide, serves on multiple technology education boards, and speaks at national conferences.
As runner-up, she receives a $2,000 prize.
Third Place: Luke Becker
Luke Becker, an Agricultural and Technology Education teacher and CTE Coordinator at Armstrong High School in Plymouth, Minn., receives third place honors for his visionary integration of aerospace engineering and STEM into student-centered innovation.
Becker leads one of the nation’s premier NASA HUNCH (High School Students United with NASA to Create Hardware) programs. Under his guidance, students have developed hardware currently under NASA review, including a microgravity IV administration system and a lunar worktable. His school was recently named a NASA HUNCH Center of Excellence—one of only four in the U.S.
His leadership extends to competitive engineering, where he coached a Shell Eco Marathon team to a 2023 World Drivers Championship victory. The team was the first to race all three fuel types—internal combustion, battery electric, and hydrogen fuel cell—in one season.
For his accomplishments, Becker receives a $1,000 award. His work exemplifies how STEM education can equip students to engineer real solutions to real-world problems.
Empowering the Future Through Aerospace STEM
Through our Teacher of the Year program, AFA celebrates the critical role educators play in shaping tomorrow’s innovators. Ashlie Smith, Kala Grice-Dobbins, and Luke Becker are transforming classrooms into launchpads—where students don’t just learn science; they live it, design it, and lead with it.
These awardees will serve as AFA Educator Ambassadors. Their stories stand as powerful reminders of the transformative impact of passionate, visionary teaching.