Missy Testerman spent one of her last remaining days as the current National Teacher of the Year speaking to future educators and their teachers. “And there’s no place I’d rather be than here,” she said.
Testerman, the 2024 National Teacher of the Year, gave the keynote address at the opening day of the 2025 Educators Rising National Conference in Orlando. The students’ enthusiasm as they entered the conference ballroom, she said, made her feel hopeful about the teaching profession.
“I had tears in my eyes when you came into the room,” she said. “That is the kind of energy we need to come into our schools.”
Testerman taught first and second grade for 30 years in her hometown of Rogersville, in rural Tennessee. The town, with a population of 4,600, “looks like a Hallmark movie,” she said. Many families can trace their roots in the region back 100 years. A small number of newcomer families also live in the area.
Rogersville City School is a one-school PreK – eighth-grade district with 650 students, housed in a century-old building.
Testerman was happy teaching first and second graders. Then the district’s English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher confided to her that she was leaving the district in the summer.
Rural and small schools have a hard time recruiting certain teaching positions such as ESL. Testerman co-taught with the ESL teacher and knew the students well. “She was more than a teacher; she was an advocate for her families and a resource. Her loss would be huge.”
She worried what would happen to those students if the district couldn’t replace that teacher. She decided, at the age of 51, to earn an ESL endorsement. “I became the ESL teacher, ESL program director and the director of Title 3, if you do a great job, they will let you do lots of extra things.”
Testerman talked to the aspiring educators about the teaching profession. When she asks her students what jobs they want to do when they’re adults, they will often say “Influencer.”
“Teachers are the ultimate influencers,” she said. “You will be part of a field that takes students from all backgrounds and abilities, and you will make their wildest dreams come true.”
Near the end of her address, Testerman took questions from audience members:
Did you have advice for first year teachers? “Find a mentor, the one teacher you want to be like. That person will be so energized that you asked them.”
How has your teaching philosophy evolved.” At first, I wanted everyone to be happy. Then, I changed into a teacher who demands so much, because we only have one chance to get it right. If a student has three years of an ineffective teacher, they almost never ever catch up. “
What are you looking forward to? I’m looking forward to seeing you guys in the classroom
What do you wish you knew before you started teaching? “That it’s hard. You’ll have really hard days, but the really good days outnumber the really hard days.”
Read Kappan’s recent interview with Testerman. Her interview also is featured in episode 15 of PDK’s podcast “There’s Power in Teaching.” You can subscribe via Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify podcasts. Or you can subscribe directly using our RSS feed.
