Hunt Middle School teacher Casey Narzem has received a 2026 Award for Outstanding Early-Career Teaching from Humanities Texas.

Casey, who began her education career last fall, earned the award for exemplary contributions to humanities education. She teaches eighth grade U.S. history at Hunt.

As part of the award, Casey will receive $5,000, and Hunt will receive $1,000 to purchase humanities-based instructional materials.

“Casey Narzem is truly one of our social studies rockstar teachers and is incredibly deserving of the 2026 Award for Outstanding Early-Career Teaching!” said Patience LeBlanc, social studies coordinator for Frisco ISD. “Casey has a special talent for making history come alive.”

Casey is an alumna of Frisco ISD as well, attending Pink Elementary School and Griffin Middle School before graduating from Wakeland High School.

“Early in high school I knew I wanted to be a teacher, but it wasn't until junior year that I decided history was my passion,” Casey said.

In her senior year, she served as a classroom intern at Griffin as part of the Career and Technical Education Center’s education pathway.

“That grew my love for education and history,” she said.

After graduating from the University of North Texas, Casey completed her teaching certification and student-taught at Clark Middle School.

“All of these experiences showed me how much impact you can make on students’ lives,” she said.

The Award for Outstanding Early-Career Teaching honors educators who have completed three or fewer years of English and language arts, foreign languages, history and social studies. Teachers of art, drama, and music are eligible if they emphasize the history, criticism and theory of the arts.

Casey will be recognized at an awards ceremony this fall. Congratulations!