The Horace Mann League, a stalwart public education advocacy group, presented its three central awards at a virtual annual meeting on Friday afternoon, Feb. 19.

The league usually holds its awards luncheon concurrently with AASA’s national conference at one of the principal hotels serving conference attendees.

The league’s 2021 awards were as follows:

• Outstanding Public Educator: Joshua P. Starr, chief executive officer, PDK International
• Outstanding Friend of Public Education: Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch, founder, Family Leadership Institute
• Outstanding Friend of the League: Cristy Johnson and her staff at Artemis Connections

Jack McKay serves as the longtime executive director of the Horace Mann League of the USA (www.hmleague.org).