Teacher of the Year candidate field narrowed to 31 semifinalists
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Teacher of the Year candidate field narrowed to 31 semifinalists
ST. PAUL, Minn. Feb. 26, 2025 – The field of possible candidates for this year’s Minnesota Teacher of the Year honor has been narrowed to 31. An independent selection panel of 21 community leaders chose the semifinalists from an initial field of 142 candidates from across the state.
The panel will review the semifinalists’ portfolios again, along with semifinalist video submissions, in mid-March. The panel will select about 10 finalists from among the group. The current Minnesota Teacher of the Year, Tracy Byrd, will announce his successor at the Minnesota Teacher of the Year banquet, scheduled for May 4 at the Saint Paul RiverCentre.
Education Minnesota, the statewide educators’ union, organizes and underwrites the Teacher of the Year program. Candidates include pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade, Early Childhood Family Education and Adult Basic Education teachers, from public or private schools. The Minnesota Teacher of the Year Program also receives support from the following organizations: Education Minnesota ESI, Educators Lifetime Solutions, EFS Advisors, Harvard Club of Minnesota Foundation, SMART Technologies and Expedition Credit Union.
Semifinalists for 2025 Minnesota Teacher of the Year are listed alphabetically by last name below, including the district and school:
- Stacy Bartlett, Stillwater Area Public Schools, Stillwater Area High School
- Garrett Bruce, Robbinsdale Area Public Schools, Robbinsdale Cooper High School
- Katelyn Bruce, Minneapolis Public Schools, Lake Harriet Lower Campus
- Jodi Carufel, Bloomington Public Schools, Olson Middle School
- Ryan Collins, Mahtomedi Public Schools, Mahtomedi Middle School
- Ben Cuevas-Rengstorf, Minneapolis Public Schools, Roosevelt High School
- Christoph Dundas, Austin Public Schools, Austin High School
- Laura Eid, Eden Prairie Schools, Central Middle School
- Ted Erickson, Anoka-Hennepin School District, Blaine High School
- Megan Frantzen, South St. Paul Public Schools, Kaposia Education Center
- Ted Gehring, St. Francis Area Schools, St. Francis Middle School
- Jonathan Gilmer, Lakeville Public School District, Lakeville South High School
- Megan Hill, Minnetonka Public Schools, Groveland Elementary
- John Horton, Saint Paul Public Schools, J.J. Hill Montessori
- Amanda Jagdeo, Saint Paul Public Schools, Hamline Elementary School
- Travis Koupal, Minneapolis Public Schools, Justice Page Middle School
- Zoe Kourajian, Mounds View Public Schools, Edgewood Middle School
- Tim Larson, Medford Public Schools, Medford High School
- Criselda Martinez, Rochester Public Schools, Riverside Elementary
- Katherine Norrie, Northfield Public Schools, Northfield High School
- Michael Okwabi, Eden Prairie Schools, Eden Prairie High School
- Soren Olesen, Roseau Community School District, Roseau High School
- Sean Padden, Roseville Area Schools, Roseville Area Middle School
- Araceli Pastrana, Eden Prairie Schools, Eagle Heights Spanish Immersion
- Michelle Rada, Eden Prairie Schools, Eden Prairie High School
- Marcela Roos, Eden Prairie Schools, Eagle Heights Spanish Immersion
- Morgan Steele, Richfield Public Schools, Richfield High School
- Andrew Sundberg, Grygla Public School
- Averi M. Turner, Roseville Area Schools, Emmet D. Williams Elementary
- Kong Vang, Saint Paul Public Schools, Washington Technology Magnet School
- Linda Wallenberg, Eden Prairie Schools, Eden Prairie High School
