Erica Huggard was all smiles over the weekend — with a few tears of joy — and it’s easy to understand why.
The biology teacher at Emporia High was honored as the Region 1 secondary-level finalist for Kansas Teacher of the Year during a virtual announcement Saturday.
Huggard is an ESU graduate, obtaining a bachelor’s degree in education in 2006 before starting her teaching career the following year. She also received a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis in English as a second language from Kansas State in 2009.
Huggard has won numerous honors for her work in the classroom, including Kansas Master Teacher for the 2019-2020 academic year and state finalist for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching in 2021. Earlier this year, she was one of 45 teachers from across the country to receive the California Casualty Award for Teaching Excellence.
The 2023 Kansas Teacher of the Year will be announced Sept. 24 in Wichita. Huggard will be on KVOE’s Newsmaker 3 segment at 8:40 am Monday with more perspective on the honor.
