Kansas Teacher of the Year team tells board: schools need social-emotional supports, literacy focus and mentorship

The 2025 Kansas Teacher of the Year team presented eight core themes to the State Board on April 8, emphasizing social-emotional learning (SEL), literacy, early childhood supports and teacher mentorship.

Team members said their statewide visits reinforced three hard truths: schools must address students' social-emotional needs to enable academic learning; Kansas faces a literacy challenge that requires evidence-based instruction; and high-quality early-childhood programs and teacher mentorship are critical to long-term outcomes. The team framed these as complementary parts of student success: content competence plus relationship-building.

Key messages: - Social-emotional learning is essential, not optional: Eric Stone, a secondary teacher, told the board that "students cannot access learning when they are dysregulated. It's not a theory, it's neuroscience." Team members said SEL supports are a prerequisite for rigorous learning. - Literacy urgency: Team members warned of a national literacy dip and urged consistent, evidence-based instruction and expansion of KSDE-supported training programs such as LETRS. "A child in the primary grades has 3 years, really, to get this skill right," one teacher said. - Early-childhood and Parents as Teachers: The team asked for sustained and expanded early-childhood supports, noting KSDE's Parents as Teachers program is important but not yet available in all districts; several team members asked the Board and legislature to expand program availability. - Mentorship and retention: Multiple presenters urged structured mentorship for new teachers. "A mentor working alongside a new teacher is a non negotiable if we want them to become a successful educator," said Ben Eckelberry, a first-grade teacher; presenters cited the nursing preceptor model as an example.

The team also shared local success stories: student leadership examples and community-based projects that showcased the positive impact of teacher-led initiatives. They asked the board and policymakers to trust and support teacher professionalism and to provide the time and resources necessary for high-quality mentorship and professional development.

Ending: The Teacher of the Year team left board members with a request to prioritize SEL, early-childhood access, literacy training, and mentor programs. Board members thanked the team and several pledged follow-up conversations about mentorship models and district-level implementation.