Kim Jones has done it all at Governor's School (GS). She began as a student, and has gone on to be not only an alumnae, but also to serve on staff as both an Instructor and an Area Coordinator, as well as an outstanding ambassador for GS.

Kim’s adult connection to GS began as an Instructor, where she proved to be a uniquely gifted educator, a status confirmed when she was named the 2023 Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of the Year (NCToY). Kim credits her teaching experience at GS as one of the things that helped shape her as an educator and helped her become the NCToY. Not surprisingly, Kim became a leader of her peers at GS, taking on additional responsibilities as an Area Coordinator, a role in which Kim earned a reputation as someone others would seek out for her wise counsel and guidance as they found their way as new Instructors.

Although she’s no longer on staff at GS, Kim remains a vital part of the GS community through her passionate advocacy for GS, always eagerly using her statewide platform to remind anyone who will listen how valuable GS is to NC. Whether she’s speaking to the NC State Board of Education or sharing keynote remarks at the GS’s 60th Anniversary Celebration, Kim makes sure everyone knows how much GS means to her and how it changed her life. Her powerful advocacy has helped ensure that GS will continue to be a transformative experience for future generations of North Carolinians. One of her former colleagues said it best: “No one is a better ambassador for GS.”

For those and many other reasons, the NC Governor’s School Foundation is proud to honor Kim Jones as a Jim Hart Governor’s School Champion Award winner for 2024.