Kimberly Radostits, a Spanish teacher from Oregon, Illinois, has been selected her state’s 2022 Teacher of the Year and is one of five finalists for the 2023 National Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: Oregon Community District 220
It is always my pleasure to highlight exemplary educators who have earned honors for their work in the classroom. Today, the spotlight falls on Kimberly Radostits, a Spanish teacher from Oregon, Illinois. She was selected 2022 Teacher of the Year for Illinois, and is one of five finalists selected for 2023 National Teacher of the Year honors.
Kimberly teaches Spanish to students in grades eight through twelve at Oregon Junior/Senior High School at Oregon Community Unit District 220. She has worked there for the past 15 years.
In addition to her Spanish curriculum, Kimberly serves as the faculty advisor for a freshmen mentoring program known as “Hawks Take Flight.” The goal of the program is to give students the skills and support they need to stay on track for graduation. The program, which flags missing work, absences, and a lack of school connectedness in junior high, allows the school to identify incoming freshmen who are in need of additional support. The numbers prove her program is successful. In 2007-2008, the average number of “F” grades a year for a class of 130 freshmen was 273. By 2019-2020, there were only 16 failing grades in the freshman class.
What inspired Kimberly to develop this program? “In 2011, I left freshmen orientation in tears after having an interaction with a boy who said that he hated school and there was nothing I could do to change that,” she recalls. “The four years I spent trying to prove him wrong have strongly impacted me as a person and an educator and solidified the beliefs I have about education,” she says.
In addition this mentoring program, Kimberly co-directs a New Teacher Academy that provides support and professional development to all new hires in her district. The purpose of this Academy is to promote a connection to the district and achieve teacher retention.
Kimberly’s selection as the Illinois 2022 Teacher of the Year is not the only honor this Chalkboard Champion has earned. In 2015, she was named an Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development Emerging Leader.
Kimberly earned her Bachelor’s degree in Spanish Language and Literature from Northern Illinois University in 2007. She earned her a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Aurora University in 2014. She was designated a National Board Certified Teacher in 2011.
