Bloomington-Normal, Ill. — The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) celebrated excellence in education at the 51st Annual Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year Awards Banquet on May 17 in Bloomington-Normal. The event honored the 2025 Illinois Teacher of the Year Cohort and more than 500 exceptional educators, administrators, school staff, and volunteers – along with their guests – for their contributions to schools and communities across the state.
View the list of this year's awardees. Photos available upon request.
“Illinois educators continue to exemplify the highest standards of excellence — showing up every day with heart, hustle, and limitless talent,” said State Superintendent of Education Dr. Tony Sanders. “At a time in our history when we need to collectively uplift teaching to its rightful place as an honorable and noble profession, our annual Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year Awards Banquet celebrates Illinois educators’ extraordinary contributions. From connecting families in need with community resources, to transforming special education services, to paving pathways for English learners to access careers in STEM, the impact of our honorees reaches far beyond the classroom and into the lives and futures of students, families, and entire communities.”
The program included remarks from Dr. Sanders; Dr. Donna Leak, who is ISBE Board vice chair and superintendent of Community Consolidated Schools District 168 in Sauk Village; Dr. Rachael Mahmood, the 2024 Illinois Teacher of the Year; Víctor Gómez, the 2025 Illinois Teacher of the Year; Jessica Wentz, recipient of a 2024-25 Milken Educator Award. Dr. Lindsey Jensen, the 2018 Illinois Teacher of the Year and state coordinator for Educators Rising Illinois, served as emcee. Community Consolidated School District 181’s Hinsdale Middle School Jazz Ensemble provided musical entertainment for the more than 1,000 guests in attendance.
“No one does more to shape the future than the people who show up in schools every single day, ready to inspire,” said Dr. Leak in her remarks at the banquet. “You are counselors, cheerleaders, problem-solvers, mentors — sometimes all before 10 a.m. And somehow, you keep showing up with creativity, grace, and grit. The honorees in this room represent the very best of what education can be -- a place where students are seen and supported.”
The annual banquet, sponsored by ISBE for honorees and their guests, celebrates the exemplary educators who go above and beyond to make positive impacts in their school communities. Award categories include early career educators, classroom teachers, administrators, teams, volunteers, educational service personnel, and school support personnel. After evaluation by a committee of educators and stakeholders, honorees receive one of three levels of award: Excellence, Meritorious Service, or Special Recognition. ISBE accepts nominations to the Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year Awards all year round.
ISBE received a record number of nominations and applications for the 2025 Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year Awards. Among those recognized was Víctor Gómez, Illinois’ 2025 Illinois Teacher of the Year, who co-developed East Leyden High School’s bilingual program and helped launch its first Bilingual Chemistry course.
“I believe that students are at the heart of everything we do as educators and are often our greatest inspiration. My students’ resilience, determination, ganas de sobresalir, and ability to navigate multiple languages remind me daily of the importance of creating spaces where they feel valorados,” said Gómez in his remarks at the banquet. “As the Illinois Teacher of the Year, I will advocate for not only bilingual education but all education. I will uplift students' cultural and linguistic assets as a valuable and necessary part of our educational institutions.”
Gómez will share his knowledge and expertise with an even larger audience via a state-funded ambassadorship beginning in July. He will represent Illinois on the national stage in the National Teacher of the Year program sponsored by the Council of Chief State School Officers.
At the banquet, ISBE also presented Jessica Wentz, a first-grade teacher at Washington Grade School District 52’s Lincoln Grade School and the sole Illinois recipient of the prestigious 2024-25 Milken Educator Award, with the Milken Educator Obelisk. Wentz is the 113th Illinois educator to receive the award since the state joined the Milken program in 1988.
Learn more about the Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year program on the ISBE Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year webpage.
