DECA Chapter:  Edmond Memorial High School (retired 2021)

Over 30 years of service to Oklahoma DECA. Kim has been instrumental in helping the organization continue to be successful by providing advice and her time to help in any way needed. She has always had large DECA chapters at Edmond Memorial and they have always been very involved and successful at State CDC. She has focused on community service with her chapter every year. 

From Kim’s Nominators:

It is a great pleasure to write this letter of support for Kim Walters. There is no doubt that she is most deserving of this award. Kim has given so many years to DECA and has been a strong leader in the organization. She has always been one that other advisors turn to for help and advice. The dedication she has shown to her students is second to none and so many of them have many amazing stories to share about all that they have learned from her. Kim has spent countless hours preparing in order to provide the best for her students. All of her students would say that not only does she help them learn marketing and management concepts, but she helps prepare them for life. They have lovingly called her “Walt” for years, and this just goes to show the relationship she has developed with her students over the years. In the classroom and through DECA, Kim provides many opportunities for her students to be successful and to learn how to take what they have learned into the real world. The Edmond Memorial DECA chapter is always very successful at Oklahoma State CDC every year. This is not solely because her students work to do their best in competition – it is also because of how she encourages and pushes them to be their best. It truly is a bit difficult to summarize all she has done to make an impact on all of those around her. Her impact is hard to quantify and the successes that have come from her efforts are immeasurable.

Through DECA, she has not only made an impact on her students but also their parents. Many of them have traveled alongside her to the Annual Edmond Memorial DECA New York Trip. She has been known to take around 80 students and parents at a time! She has even become a resource for National DECA when they plan their trips. She has mentored many other advisors that have desired to travel with students and has given so many helpful tips.

Kim and her DECA Chapters have always put their community first. Each year they also reach out to another community to spread joy through their Halloween Carnival. It is a free event for students in a lower socioeconomic area. She is not only helping those in need but she is teaching her students to do so as well.

As her fellow colleagues, we would like to nominate Kim Walters of Edmond Memorial High School, for the IMPACT Award. Oklahoma DECA will truly miss her as she retires this year and we feel this is a great opportunity for us all to recognize her achievements.