Candace Smith was a high school teacher for most of her twenty-five year career in public education in Pueblo, Colorado. She taught Language Arts, coached speech and debate, then moved into history and broad area social sciences and psychology. After earning a Master's degree in economics education, she excelled in teaching Advanced Placement Economics.
She received many teaching awards at the local, state, and national levels, including the Colorado Enterprising Teacher of the Year Award, the Colorado Teaching Award, the Foundation for Teaching Economics National Prize for Excellence in Economics Education and the National Milken Educator Award.
Candace enjoyed her association with Quality Education Associates in the early ‘90’s in conducting systems transformation workshops for K-12 educators in Total Quality Learning. “Association with members of QEA was life transforming as I changed the way I viewed the critical relationship between the teacher and the learner. I began to see that it is more important to focus my attention on the process of learning rather than on the teaching process.” She implemented and adapted total quality continuous improvement processes to her classroom as an overall management system as well a system for students to use to assess and improve their own levels of learning.
Candace has long believed that education thrives through thoughtful conversation among learners as they engage with the great ideas that have shaped human history and culture. For her, education is a lifelong journey of learning, reflection, and growth. She is deeply grateful for the many caring and supportive people in her life, including former students, parents, and fellow educators. As she reflects, “It is only through learning to be in right relationship with others that I have truly learned.”
She is also appreciative of many organizations with which she has been fortunate to have been affiliated, including, most recently Milkens of the West, a regional initiative formed by Milken Educators from Colorado, South Dakota, and Wyoming to combat teacher burnout and retention challenges. The coalition empowers early-career teachers by hosting events like the Educator Empowerment Summit, fostering mentorship, and building a supportive community
Today Candace is the Managing Owner of Etiquette for the Business of Life, an education endeavor that offers interactive, hands-on trainings and practical consultations in dining etiquette and self-presentation skills for businesses, universities, civic and youth groups.
She and her husband reside in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
1973 University of Southern Colorado, B.A., University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, M.A., The American School of Protocol
The Etiquette Blog (Weekly blogs)
