Harvard Award for APS Teacher

Posted on 11/07/2022

Congratulations to North High School Marketing Education Instructor and DECA Adviser Eric Mathews on his being named winner of the Harvard Business School Club of Northeastern Ohio Samuel H. Elliot Award. Mr. Mathews was nominated by a parent of a North student who felt Eric should be recognized for his leadership in economic education.


Featured in the group photo from left to right are Crystal Dortch (Ohio Department of Education), Desiree Reynolds (Buchtel CLC), Eric Mathews, Virginque Whitmore (Buchtel CLC) and Angela Mitchell (Hyre CLC).

APS educators are providing students with valuable and stimulating economic instruction. To help recognize the work of outstanding educators, The Harvard Business School Club of Northeastern Ohio (“HBSNEO”), in cooperation with EconomicsAmerica, established The Samuel H. Elliott Award in 1976. One of the founders of the HBSNEO, Mr. Elliott retired as a Senior Vice President of Sohio Corporation after 37 years of service. He was keenly interested in business management issues and felt strongly students needed to be prepared to use economic principles to make sound, rational decisions. The award is presented annually to a teacher (K-12) in greater Cleveland for “outstanding accomplishments in developing in young people a better understanding of the free enterprise system and ethical business management.”

The Award
The purpose of this program is to:

• honor a teacher in northeastern Ohio for outstanding economic or entrepreneurship education practices,
• provide students with a greater understanding of the American Free Enterprise System,
• encourage teachers to develop formal descriptions of their economic education or entrepreneurship practices, and
• stimulate creativity and innovation in economic or entrepreneurship education teaching practices.

Eric Mathews was presented The Samuel H. Elliott Award at the Enspire 2022 Conference session Saturday