Category Archives: Education

ALonna Soward-Puryear garners honors as Maryland’s 2026 Teacher of the Year

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Elementary school educator ALonna Soward-Puryear has been named the 2026 Teacher of the Year for the state of Maryland. Photo credit: CCSSO NTOY

I am always excited to shine a spotlight on an exceptional educator who has garnered accolades for their work in the classroom. Today, I shine the spotlight on ALonna Soward-Puryear, an elementary school teacher from Maryland. She has been named her state’s 2026 Teacher of the Year.

ALonna teaches math and reading to first, third, and fourth graders at Monocacy Elementary School in Frederick, Maryland. There she works as a targeted interventionist. She has taught at the school since 2019.

In her classroom, ALonna employs culturally responsive teaching in her instructional design, recognizing and leveraging students’ diverse cultural backgrounds as assets to learning and ensuring that all students see themselves in the curriculum and feel empowered to engage.

“My students are hands-down my favorite part of teaching. They’re the reason I do what I do,” declares ALonna. “I love their energy, their curiosity, their notes and drawings, and the inside jokes we build as a class,” she continued. “There’s nothing better than seeing how much they grow, not just academically, but as people throughout the year,” she concluded.

In addition to her work with young students, ALonna serves on the school’s School Improvement Team and the Systemic Team for Blueprint Implementation. She actively fosters instructional excellence and promotes a community of academic growth through initiatives such as the Ready for Pre-K/K and the ELEVATE summer programs. And as if all that were not enough, she mentors beginning teachers.

“Be a lifelong learner,” ALonna advises those she mentors. “One of the most important things you can do as an educator is to stay curious and reflective. During your internships, don’t be afraid to take risk, try new strategies and experiment with different tools or lesson formats. Then take time to reflect on what worked, what didn’t and how you can grow from it,” she says.

ALonna earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary/Special Education and her Master’s degree in Educational Leadership in 2024, both from Hood College in Frederick, Maryland.

Former NFL player Cory Schlesinger now teaches in Michigan

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Former NFL pro football player Cory Schlesinger now teaches technical education and vocational education  in Park Allen, Michigan. Photo credit: In-Play Sports Magazine

There are many examples of professional athletes who have gone from the sports arena into the public school classroom. One of these is Cory Schlesinger, a former NFL pro football player who now teaches high school in Michigan.

Cory was born on June 23, 1972, in Columbus, Nebraska. As a high school student, he played as a linebacker and fullback for Columbus High School. In his junior year, and again in his senior year, he was named to Nebraska’s All-State team. He also won the 189-pound wrestling state championship twice during his high school years. During his college years, Cory played for the Cornhuskers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In his senior year there, Cory scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns in the 1995 Orange Bowl that helped his university capture their first national title.

Cory currently teaches computer-aided design, drafting, and vocational education classes at Allen Park High School in Allen Park, Michigan. But every one of the 120 students in his classes is well aware that Cory is a retired NFL fullback who played 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions. His nickname then was the “Sledge,” a player who blocked his opponents and brought them down like a sledge hammer.

Despite this reputation, the former pro-football player has a great heart, patiently instructing his students, conducting a school-wide strength and conditioning program for both boys and girls, and donating his time to charitable events organized by the Lions. “Cory’s such a generous, kind and wonderful person,” described former Allen Park High  principal Janet Wasko in 2013. “He doesn’t stand on ceremony, but everyone knows who he is. He cares about the whole student body. It’s not just about football,” she said.

Cory Schlesinger: the “sledge hammer” that became a true Chalkboard Champion.

 

Sp Ed educator Tiffani Jaseph named Arizona’s 2026 State Teacher of the Year

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Special Education teacher Tiffani Jaseph has been named Arizona’s 2025 State Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: Arizona Educational Foundation

It is always my pleasure to share the story of an outstanding educator who has earned accolades for their work in American public schools. Today I share the story of Tiffani Jaseph, an elementary teacher from Arizona. She has been named her state’s 2026 Teacher of the Year.

Tiffani currently teaches Special Education to students in grades K-5 at Copper View Elementary School located in Sahuarita, Arizona. There she develops accommodations for students with higher support needs. She is committed to ensuring that her classroom is accessible for both academic and social-emotional development. To achieve this, Tiffani emphasizes inclusive, strengths-based instruction tailored to meet diverse learning styles.Prior to working at Copper View, Tiffani taught In Yuma, Arizona. There she provided Special Education interventions for students from kindergarten through sixth grade. She also worked in the Sunnyside Unified School District, where she taught in an extended-day Special Education program for fourth and fifth graders. In that position, she provided specially-designed instruction while supporting students’ needs in the general education environment. In all, Tiffani’s career as an educator spans 15 years.

In addition to her work as a teacher, Tiffani has helped her school develop a partnership with the University of Arizona Adaptive Sports program. Through this partnership, students can participate in a weeklong physical education clinic. Through this program, students can become engaged in adaptive sports, including wheelchair basketball. Tiffani has also established a Running Club on her campus.

Her designation as Arizona’s State Teacher of the Year is not the only honor Tiffani has earned. She was named Teacher of the Year in both the Yuma and Sahuarita districts, and she was a finalist for Sahuarita District Teacher of the Year.

Tiffani earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 2005 and her Master’s degree in Special Education in 2009, both from the University of Arizona.

 

WA teacher Stephanie King garners prestigious NEA award

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High school English teacher Stephanie King of Granger, Washington, has garnered a 2025 Horace Mann Award for Teaching Excellence. Photo credit: Yakima Herald-Republic

There are many excellent educators working in American public schools, and I am always excited when I get to write about one of them. Today, I am writing about Stephanie King, a high school English teacher from Washington. She has been named one of five recipients of a 2025 Horace Mann Award for Teaching Excellence by the National Education Association (NEA).

Stephanie has been a teacher at Granger High School in the Yakima Valley city of Granger for 16 years. She also serves her school district as a girls varsity and middle school soccer coach. Her student population is comprised of predominantly Hispanic, multilingual, and economically disadvantaged students.

This amazing education helped her students publish a book entitled We Are America Granger: Voice of the Nation’s Future, which explores the students’s experiences in their home town. The volume was published through the national We Are America Project. “Being able to have my students be able to write their stories about what the American experience is like for them, and to highlight what it’s like here in Granger for them as teenagers and seniors last year, it was phenomenal to have the published final book in hand,” declares Stephanie.

The Horace Mann Award for Teaching Excellence recognizes outstanding educators for demonstrating exemplary leadership in and out of the classroom, showing expertise in their instructional practices, advocating for students and the profession, demonstrating a commitment to equity and diversity, and engaging their communities and supporting other educators, according to the NEA Foundation website.

As a Horace Mann Award honoree, Stephanie will be featured in a mini-documentary which will be premiered at the NEA Foundation Salute to Excellence in Education Gala on Feb. 13, 2026, in Washington DC. In addition, she will receive a $10,000 cash prize. Although the cash prize is intended for her personal use, this Chalkboard Champion has indicated she plans to invest part of it back into her community to fund athletics programs.

 

Alabama educator Evelyn Anderson championed rights for the mobility-impaired

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Alabama teacher, school counselor, and paraplegic Evelyn Anderson was a Chalkboard Champion for the mobility-impaired. Photo Credit: the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame.

It is always an inspiration to read stories about individuals who have overcome challenges to achieve success in their life. One of these is Evelyn Anderson, a classroom teacher and paraplegic from Alabama who championed the rights of the mobility-impaired.

Evelyn was born on Aug. 2, 1926, in Greensboro, Alabama. She was only four years old when she was hit by a stray .22 caliber bullet, and the incident left her spine severed. For the rest of her life, she was confined to a wheelchair or a gurney. On this “rolling table” she would lie prone, with her lower body covered, propped up on an elbow. Despite her challenges, Evelyn graduated with honors from Judson College, with a double major in Art and History.

After she earned her degree, Evelyn began teaching art at Greensboro High School in 1948. In the beginning, her employment was unofficial because Alabama law prohibited severely handicapped individuals from working as teachers. However, due to Evelyn’s inspiration, legislation to repeal the discriminatory law was enacted in 1953. The following year, the trailblazing educator became the first severely handicapped teacher hired by Alabama public schools. In addition to this victory, she inspired the city of Greensboro to provide accommodations for mobility-impaired individuals, even before required by law.

After teaching for a few years, Evelyn returned to college and in 1964 earned a Master’s degree in Counseling from the University of Alabama. She then taught English and Spanish and served as a guidance counselor at Greensboro High School.

In addition to her work in the classroom, Evelyn worked to make major contributions to her community. 1977, she served on the Alabama Governor’s Committee on Employment of the Handicapped. She was also a founding member of the Greensboro Friends of the Library.

Throughout her life, Evelyn earned many accolades for her work as an educator. In 1974, she was named an Outstanding Educator, and the following year, she was honored as the Outstanding Counselor of the Year. In 1977, she was recognized as the Alabama Handicapped Professional Woman of the Year.

After a career that spanned over 30 years, both official and unofficial, Evelyn retired in 1982. In 1976, Alabama Educational Television aired a short documentary film about her life as an educator and champion for disabled children. In 2011, she was inducted into the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame.

Evelyn Anderson passed away on Oct. 7, 1998, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, following a brief illness. She was 72 years old. You can read more about this Chalkboard Champion at Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame.