Teacher of the Year

2018 National Teacher of the Year Mandy Manning (center, with glasses) met with Returned Peace Corps Volunteers in Washington D.C. on Sunday as she prepared for a series of meetings with top federal officials including stops at the Department of Education and the White House.  Manning teaches immigrant and refugee children at Joel E. Ferris High School in Spokane, Washington. Manning said her two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Armenia helped convince her to become a teacher. “I’m very excited for this opportunity to tell about my students, and to give some perspective,” Manning told the RPCVs in attendance. 

Representatives of the Peace Corps Community for Refugees (PCC4Refugees) were on hand for the meeting.  They, along with NPCA, extended their support to Mandy as she embarks on a yearlong national tour advocating for the more than three million teachers and 50 million public school students across the country.  PCC4Refugees leader Barbara Busch shared, “meeting Mandy today was so inspiring!  Her enthusiasm, expertise and obvious love for her students was awesome and really infectious!   I think we all left with renewed hope and energy!”

PCC4Refugees engages former Peace Corps volunteers in advocating for humane immigration policies and helping refugee families resettle in their communities, as well as helping refugees overseas. “Mandy is an inspiration to anyone who values quality teaching and appreciates the particular challenge of helping refugee and immigrant students succeed in America. Her selection as National Teacher of the Year is a welcome recognition by the nation’s top school leaders of her distinguished career, as well as the importance of welcoming newcomers like her students,” stated PCC4Refugees member Pat Nyhan.

Learn more about PCC4Refugees and how they will be supporting Mandy.

Pictured top row (left to right): Jean Aden, Valerie Kurka, Manning, Barbara Busch, Pat Nyhan, Colleen Conroy and Don Drach. Bottom row (l-r): Meisha Robinson and Anne Baker.

“I am honored and excited …” said the longtime teacher from Spokane, Washington in a statement. “This year I hope to engage the nation in a conversation about how we can encourage students to experience things outside of their understanding. When we move out of our comfort zones, visit new places, listen to others’ thoughts, and share our own opinions, we become compassionate and open.”

Since 2011, Manning has been the High School Newcomer Center English Language Development Teacher for the Spokane Public Schools which has a large refugee and ESL population including more than 70 languages spoken and many arriving with no prior formal instruction. Manning employs experiential education methods to help her students transition to their new situations, appreciate where they’ve come from and jumpstart their learning. She often helps the teens and their families outside of the classroom. Manning is also active in connecting the learning center with community leaders and new teachers to share her vision of the importance of the program’s work. She began her teaching career as a Peace Corps volunteer in Armenia from 1999 – 2001.

“Peace Corps showed me the beauty and the value of every new person, their way of thinking, acting, and being, and helped me to be adaptable to new situations and experiences. That adaptability and acceptance of people and experiences outside of my understanding serves me every day in the classroom,” said Manning by email. “Peace Corps changed my trajectory in life, bringing me to where I am today. I am forever thankful I volunteered.”

Earlier this year Manning was named the 2018 Washington  State Teacher of the Year and then one of the top four finalists in the national competition put on by the nonprofit Council of Chief State School Officers.  “Mandy is a strong educator who believes in a great public education for every student and has a unique perspective on meeting the needs of some of our nation's most vulnerable children. She is dedicated to empowering teacher leaders and putting people first,” said the National Teacher of the Year selection committee in a statement. As part of this honor, Manning will travel the country to represent educators and advocate on behalf of teachers and students.

Pattye Volz is a freelance writer based in Colorado Springs.