In August, nominations opened for the USD 480 Teachers of the Year. Nominations were submitted by parents, community members, and USD 480 employees to select a teacher of the year for each school in the district.
The USD 480 Teacher of the Year selection process follows the Kansas State Department of Education's process in nominating and selecting the winners. Each school within USD 480 has a teacher selected to be their school’s teacher of the year and from those a teacher is selected at both the elementary and secondary level to represent USD 480 at the state level.
Without further ado, this year’s USD 480 Teachers of the Year are…
The elementary and secondary winners are then nominated to be the Kansas Teacher of the Year, in addition to traveling around to other Kansas schools to see how other nominees are making a difference in their schools during the following spring. The USD 480 elementary and secondary winners will also host a group of fellow nominees to showcase what they are doing to make a difference to students within our district.
Rosa Estrada from Meadowlark Elementary is the USD 480 Elementary Teacher of the Year and Josiah Smiddy from Eisenhower Middle School is the USD 480 Secondary Teacher of the Year. These two educators will represent USD 480 at the KSDE Region 1 Kansas Teacher of the Year Recognition Banquet on April 18, 2026 in Salina. They are also nominated for the Kansas State Department of Education's Kansas Teacher of the Year.
State nominees also work with policy makers, business and community leaders, and others across the state to help them better understand the realities and challenges of classrooms in Kansas.
USD 480 would like to thank everyone who participated in the nomination process and be on the lookout for next year's nomination next spring.
Bright Start Teacher of the Year - Odalis Marin
Cottonwood Teacher of the Year - Kaitlyn Ralston
MacArthur Teacher of the Year - Daniella Claypool
Meadowlark Teacher of the Year - Rosa Estrada
Prairie View Teacher of the Year - Elva Rivas
Sunflower Teacher of the Year - Tamra Kapp
Eisenhower Teacher of the Year - Josiah Smiddy
Seymour Rogers Teacher of the Year - Vail Garrett
Liberal High School Teacher of the Year - Kimberly Buller
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