Since the award’s establishment in 1994, KDP and the Association of Teacher Educators have named a very select few from around the United States as National Student Teachers of the Year.
The award recognizes one student teacher/intern annually who has demonstrated the ability to plan and develop classroom management skills and instructional strategies that support all students; establish interpersonal relationships with students, parents, faculty, and staff; and reflect powerfully on their student teaching experience. KDP and ATE are honored to partner for this prestigious award in offering national recognition, at least one speaking engagement, and a $2,000 award to our student teacher recipient.
To be eligible for this award, at the time of application, the applicant must:
- be an undergraduate student, post-baccalaureate, or graduate student enrolled in a teacher education program (leading to teacher certification) at an accredited institution of higher education and have completed at least 12 credit hours in that institution’s teacher education program;
- have an overall grade-point average of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale;
- be or have completed student teaching/interning full time in a curricular area for which they are eligible for certification in a PK–12 classroom in an accredited public or private school where they spend the majority of the day in direct instructional contact with students;
- be committed to teaching as a full-time career;
- seek nomination or recommendation from their supervising teacher, university supervisor, or director of field experiences; and
- adhere to the requirements as outlined in the application materials.
All applicants must submit an online application that includes a lesson plan and a 30-minute video consisting of an introduction, the lesson plan delivered in a classroom setting, and a reflection of the outcome. Up to three candidates from the same institution are allowed to submit applications per award cycle.
The online application is closed for the 2023–2024 cycle. The recipient will be announced on August 30, 2024.