Park City High School officially has Utah’s Teacher of the Year.
Joanna Andres, who teaches criminal law and Advanced Placement U.S. government, was named the State Board of Education’s Teacher of the Year in a ceremony earlier this month. The statewide competition aims to recognize distinguished and dedicated educators in Utah.
“Joanna is a world-class AP teacher in the best district in the state who was just voted by our seniors, and this has never happened before, to win the staff award for best educator and the student (award) at the same time,” said Park City High School Principal Caleb Fine. “So she may have been surprised, but we were not.”
Andres is the first person in the district’s history to be honored with the Utah Teacher of the Year award, according to Superintendent Lyndsay Huntsman.
“She’s very forward thinking, but at the same time, she’s also willing to question, ‘Is this truly what’s best for kids?’” Huntsman said. “Her peers have a tremendous amount of respect for her, and they’ll come to her with concerns. … She doesn’t want to be viewed as that mouthpiece, but they also know she’s not afraid to push back when (the district) might have this crazy idea. It’s a huge honor, and I can’t think of anyone more deserving than Joanna.”
Huntsman also praised Andres’ approach to her U.S. government class, proudly pointing out Andres had 32 students receive the highest score possible on their advanced placement tests last year.
“The academic discourse that is happening in her classroom is unmatched,” Huntsman said. “She’s really on the forefront of transforming education for our kids and being willing to try those new things. It’s not a ‘sit and get’ classroom. She has high expectations, and the kids know that.”
Originally from Santa Clarita, California, Andres moved to San Diego after high school to pursue her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education, although she initially considered attending law school. She then spent the next few decades in a “whirlwind” of moving vans and new cities, following her diplomat husband to Arizona, Washington, D.C., and Paris, France, before settling in Utah eight years ago.
Andres doesn’t shy away from current events in the classroom. She sees it as a way for her to connect her curriculum’s content with the students’ lived experiences, which involves a lot of heavy lifting at the beginning of the school year to establish expectations and an atmosphere of respect.
“We used to be good at talking to one another about hard things and being able to separate ideology and realize, ‘Hey, you have experiences. You have this background that makes you have those ideas. I’m not going to negate who you are and not like you.’ For me, that’s really important. That’s what I want my class to be,” Andres said. “You can’t make people feel unsafe, but sometimes it’s OK for you to hear things that make you a little uncomfortable because then you can figure out how you’re going to respond.”
Andres is always first to praise others before herself, and she emphasized her relationships with students, other teachers and school administrators as a key factor in her success.
“We have an incredible leadership team in this district and at this site, and I’m sure the other teachers in the district can attest to that,” she said. “I have never worked with better teachers. They inspire, they create, but they’re also very forgiving. … Our students want to be seen, and before they can learn, they want to feel like they’re seen.”
Every Park City High School student has an important connection with an adult in the building, whether it’s someone on the custodial staff, a teacher, an administrator or a receptionist in the front office, and that’s what makes the educational experience so different from other schools, Andres said.
“We’re fortunate that we have a lot of people of Joanna’s caliber in this district, so it’s just really fun, and I’m so glad she can be honored,” Fine said. “I’m thrilled, excited, and it’s just another example of why I have the best job in the world because I get to work with educators like Joanna every day.”
The other finalists, nicknamed the “Fab Five,” included Aaron Andersen of Skyridge High School in Lehi, Markay Anderson of Ashley Elementary in Vernal, Joseph Kozlowski of the Edith Bowen Laboratory School in Logan and Ashton “Rai” Pattison of Kearns Junior High School.
School districts can nominate one teacher every year by putting together a packet of information on the educator along with letters of recommendation. Andres said her letters of recommendation were written by Fine, Huntsman and one of her students. She also submitted anonymized testimonials from former students about their experiences in her class.
Then, Andres met with the State Board of Education for an interview, which involved a five- to seven-minute opening statement, rapid fire question and answer round and closing statements.
As Utah’s Teacher of the Year, Andres will now undergo a “year of service” to advocate for her profession across the state by speaking with other teachers, administrators and lawmakers. She said her first goal is to bring legislators and members of the Utah State Board of Education with her as she visits different schools.
“They can meet teachers and see what they do and build relationships with one another because I think sometimes people make assumptions if they’re not in the space,” Andres said. “They’re not there, they’re not hearing things, and they’re not experiencing what our educators do. It’s easy to fill in the holes and make assumptions, so I think if this role can serve that purpose, I would be honored.”