Auburn College of Education graduate student named Alabama World Languages Association Promising New Teacher of the Year

When Libby Hume steps into her French classroom at Auburn High School, she brings with her not only a deep love of language but also the kind of early‑career excellence that is now being recognized statewide.

Hume, who teaches French at Auburn High and is an Auburn College of Education graduate student in the French Education Alternative Master’s Program, has been selected as the Alabama World Languages Association (AWLA) Promising New Teacher of the Year — the organization’s highest honor for new world language educators.

Each year, AWLA selects just one educator across Alabama for this award, recognizing a teacher with fewer than three years of experience who demonstrates exceptional developing abilities in the classroom and strong potential for long‑term impact in the profession. For Hume, now in her second year of teaching, the recognition is both meaningful and motivating.

“Receiving this award is so exciting as a product of the Auburn High School French Program myself,” she said. “Learning a language has been one of my most rewarding life experiences, and it’s a great feeling to offer that same experience to my students. This award motivates me to keep working hard for my students.”

Hume began teaching at Auburn High and enrolled in Auburn’s French Education Alternative Master’s Program simultaneously in August 2024 — an ambitious undertaking that impressed her faculty mentor, Sara Ahnell, an assistant clinical professor and program coordinator for Foreign Language Education in Auburn’s College of Education.

Ahnell, who received the same AWLA award earlier in her own career as an Auburn graduate, nominated Hume this past fall after recruiting her into the program and working closely with her throughout her first years in the classroom.

“Libby’s selection speaks to her promise as an educator and to the strength of our language education programs in preparing and mentoring new world language teachers across the state,” Ahnell said. “She is an outstanding example of what early‑career excellence looks like.”

Hume credits Auburn’s program — and Ahnell’s mentorship — with shaping her into the educator she is becoming.

“The Auburn College of Education, and studying under Dr. Ahnell, is one of the best places for a World Language teacher to be,” Hume said. “Through learning the best practices in World Language teaching, I know that I’m better equipped to prepare my students in learning about world languages and cultures.”

Hume recently received her award at the AWLA annual conference in Mobile, where world language educators from across Alabama gathered for professional development and recognition.

As Hume continues her graduate studies and her work in the classroom, her recognition as AWLA’s Promising New Teacher of the Year highlights not only her own dedication but also the impact of Auburn University’s commitment to preparing exceptional world language educators for Alabama’s schools.