CHICAGO – The Turnaround Management Association (TMA) will present the Butler-Cooley Excellence in Teaching Award to two educators at The 2016 TMA Annual on November 3 at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.  

This year’s recipients are Adam Burns, Innovation, English, and Broadcasting teacher at Troy Athens High School in Troy, Michigan, and Linda Noble, PhD, of the Brooklyn College Academy.   

Established in 2004 with a grant from the John Wm. Butler Foundation, Inc., the Butler-Cooley Excellence in Teaching Awards Program honors teachers who have demonstrated their capacity to change the outcome of students’ lives and the communities where they teach. The program is named in honor of Leslie Bender Butler and Cindy Butler Cooley, relatives of a past TMA chairman who collectively have spent more than 50 years as teachers, and recognizes the central role that teaching has in the life of the association.

Adam Burns
The impact Burns has had on the students of Troy Athens High School set him aside from other nominees for this year’s award. One of the most notable accomplishments was revitalization of Athens TV, a broadcasting class Burns began six years ago after it stopped running due to lack of interest. Interest is no longer a problem as the course has grown from zero students to over 125 every year, each hoping to be part of the creative and empowering environment Burns has fostered. Where once there was nothing, now there is a daily award-winning news broadcast, two annual film festivals, and yearly trips to New York City and Los Angeles to get an up-close look at the film and broadcasting industry. Read more about Burns here. 
 
Linda Noble, PhD
Dr. Noble is a lifelong student. She earned her Bachelor of Business Studies degree from the University of Limerick, Ireland; two Master’s Degrees from New York University and from Brooklyn College, and a Doctorate in Education from New York University. She currently dedicates her service to the New York City Public High Schools teaching the New York State Regents Course in Global History and Geography at Brooklyn College Academy. Dr. Noble’s dedication and passion for education over the last 20 years is robust and broad reaching, from work on cross-cultural AIDS prevention to her vigorous classroom reputation with both students and faculty, alike. Read more about Dr. Noble here. 

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About the Turnaround Management Association
The Turnaround Management Association (TMA) is the leading organization dedicated to turnaround management, corporate restructuring, and distressed investing. Established in 1988, TMA has more than 9,000 members in 55 chapters worldwide, including 32 in North America. Members include turnaround practitioners, attorneys, accountants, advisors, liquidators, executive recruiters, and consultants, as well as academic, government, and judicial employees.