The month of December started off great in the Owings' household. Dr. William Owings, a professor in the Educational Leadership Program at the Darden College of Education, and his wife and co-author Leslie Kaplan were notified they will received a 2014 Distinguished Fellow Award from the National Education Finance Conference (NEFC). This lifetime award is given to individuals who have gained national visibility by their exemplary research and/or practice in the field of public education finance, both at the elementary and secondary level, as well as in higher education.

William Owings, who has taught at ODU for 11 years, has worked as a public school teacher, an elementary and high school principal, assistant superintendent and superintendent of schools. His books co-authored with Kaplan include "Teacher Quality, Teaching Quality, and School Improvement," "The Effective Schools Movement: History, Analysis, and Application" and "American Public School Finance." They also have co-written articles that have appeared in National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) Bulletin, Journal of School Leadership and the Journal of Education Finance. They co-edit The Journal for Effective Schools.

The couple will accept the National Education Finance Conference Distinguished Fellow Award at the NEFC Annual Conference in April 2014 at the Hyatt Regency in Louisville, Kentucky.