Three Lakers Recognized as "Top 22 Under 40" by Murray State Alumni Association

Three Calloway County Laker faculty members were recently recognized by the Murray State Alumni Association as part of the "Top 22 Under 40" Class of 2023.

Ashley Fritsche is a four time graduate of Murray State with a B.S. in Marketing (‘06), a Teaching Certificate in Business and Marketing (‘08), a MA Teacher Leadership (‘12) and Ed.S. in Education (‘19). For the past 14 years Fritsche has served as one of the Business and Marketing teachers at Calloway County High School. In addition to being in the classroom, she also serves as a Site-Based Decision-Making Council member and secretary, is a prom sponsor, assists with the Interact club and is a sponsor for FBLA. Outside of the classroom, Fritsche seeks to help the Kentucky Department of Education enhance Business Education throughout the state by serving as communications publicist for the Kentucky Business Education Association, which is a group of 200 Business and Marketing teachers and stakeholders from Kentucky, and as a KDE-appointed NTI lead teacher, through which Fritsche helps to train new teachers both in the classroom and in their roles as FBLA advisors. Growing up as a Racer has impacted Fritsche throughout her own educational journey and helped to guide the education she provides for her students.

As a three time graduate of Murray State, Mark Mallory received a bachelors in English/Secondary Education ('08), a master’s in Secondary Education ('13) and another master’s in Education Administration ('15). He is currently the principal of Southwest Calloway Elementary School in Calloway County, Ky., where he has served for five years. Mallory serves as a member of Calloway County’s Playhouse in the Park board of directors and as a member of the education committee, as well as serving as a KASA ambassador for the Murray area. Mallory also stage-managed the production of the Penguin Project Presents: High School Musical. The Penguin Project is a program that pairs students with special needs with a mentor to put on a theatrical production. His wife, Heidi, is also a Murray State graduate and guidance counselor at Murray Middle School. They have two sons, Henry and Maxwell, who also attend Southwest Elementary.

Mary Grace Starks is a two-time graduate of Murray State University, earning a B.S. in Communication Disorders (‘12) and an M.S., in Speech-Language Pathology (‘14). Early in her professional career she found her passion for serving individuals with complex communication needs, while also educating families, teachers, and community stakeholders on how to best support those individual communication needs. Starks currently serves as Publications Chair for the Kentucky Speech-Language Hearing Association (KSHA) and is also a member of the KSHA social media committee. In each of those roles, Starks seeks to create content and notify KSHA members about the significant advocacy efforts to maintain and educate community members on communication development and a variety of communication disorders. Starks also currently serves as the speech-language pathologist for children and their families at the Calloway County Preschool/Head Start in Murray, KY.