As this year’s Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, Melissa Evon will spend the 2025-2026 school year serving as “Ambassador of Teaching” for the state. In this role, she is working with the Oklahoma State Department of Education on teacher recruitment and retention initiatives and giving public talks across the state.
In 2025, I was honored to be named the Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, a recognition that reflects not only my personal journey but also the strength of our state’s public education system. My roots run deep in Oklahoma’s schools. I attended Oklahoma City and Mustang Public Schools during my K-12 education and did my undergraduate work at Southwestern Oklahoma State University. In my role as the state’s Ambassador of Teaching, I now work alongside the Oklahoma State Department of Education to strengthen the educator pipeline, highlight teaching innovations, and celebrate effective teachers serving schools across the state.
Three Decades, One Purpose
I will never forget the day I told my mother that I wanted to become a teacher. She laughed and said, “You’ll never be rich!” I simply replied, “I want to do something that matters.” That conviction has guided my career, and I believe it guides my colleagues. In 1992, I began teaching at Elgin High School. Through my husband’s military service, I had opportunities to teach in Virginia and Colorado. When we returned to Oklahoma in 2014 following my husband’s retirement from the Air Force, both of us joined Elgin Public Schools where we continue to teach today. Spending more than thirty years in the classroom has strengthened my belief that great teaching is built on consistency, reflection, and a commitment to growth, which are principles that now guide my work as Oklahoma’s Ambassador of Teaching.
For many years, I taught middle and high school social studies, guiding students through history and civics. While I valued those experiences, my transition in 2023 to teaching Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) within Oklahoma Career Tech system reshaped my perspective on what makes learning lasting. I have discovered that meaningful education is rooted in relevance. The more lessons connect to students’ futures, the deeper their engagement becomes.
Today, I teach courses such as Principles of Human Services, Hospitality, and Interpersonal Studies. These classes emphasize applied learning and real-world problem solving. When students design a personal budget, plan a meal, or mediate a conflict, they are not only mastering academic standards but also building essential life and workplace skills that US companies are increasingly seeking in prospective employees. This work has reaffirmed my belief that effective teaching is less about delivering information and more about designing experiences that cultivate competence, confidence, and connection.
Reflecting on more than three decades in education, I have witnessed tremendous change. Technology has transformed classrooms, introducing tools and methods that were unimaginable when I began teaching in the early 1990s. We have seen shifts in approaches to teacher compensation, curricular expectations, and the needs of the students we serve. Yet amid these changes, one constant remains: teaching is, and always will be, a purposeful calling. Oklahoma’s teachers prepare the next generation of citizens, workers, and leaders, supporting the state’s economic competitiveness and prosperity. The lessons taught in our classrooms have a lasting impact on the individual as well. Today’s engaged student is tomorrow’s engineer, healthcare professional, artist, or parent.
Working with the Oklahoma State Department of Education
The Oklahoma Teacher of the Year program has recognized outstanding educators since 1954 when Ethel Briggs became the state’s first honoree. Today, the selection process is managed by the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) and begins at the district level. Each of Oklahoma’s 509 public school districts selects a candidate, and from this group of district honorees, one educator is chosen to serve as the state’s ambassador.
The Teacher of the Year then embarks on a year-long ambassadorship, stepping out of the classroom temporarily to represent Oklahoma’s educators statewide. In this role, I work closely with OSDE’s Division of Teacher Recruitment and Retention to promote initiatives that address teacher shortages, celebrate professional excellence, and build a sustainable educator pipeline. In my work, I have spoken to large groups of high school students enrolled in Career Tech Teacher Preparation programs, and I also advocate for initiatives to shore of the teacher pipeline with our state’s legislators. Groups across Oklahoma invite me to visit and speak, creating opportunities to share ideas and celebrate the work of teachers in every community. The position also connects our state to the national Teacher of the Year network. Oklahoma’s 2022 honoree, Rebecka Peterson, was later named the 2023 National Teacher of the Year, underscoring the exceptional quality of educators that our state produces.
Since beginning my ambassadorship, I have traveled across the state—from Tahlequah to Durant, Waukomis to Krebs, Broken Arrow to Waynoka, and communities in between—speaking with teachers, university students, policymakers, and civic organizations. In this work, I share four key commitments that I believe are essential for teachers:
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Building professional networks. Teachers thrive when they are supported by colleagues who uplift, challenge, and inspire them. Mentorship and collaboration have been foundational to my own professional longevity.
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Prioritizing literacy across subjects. Reading, writing, and communication skills are the foundation of success in every subject and career field, not only English language arts.
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Ensuring relevance in instruction. Lessons must connect to students’ lives and aspirations to spur their engagement and sustain meaningful learning.
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Being willing to "get out of the boat." When a lesson or strategy falls short, educators must have the courage to step away from what feels comfortable and try something new. This mindset of reflection and innovation or what I call “getting out of the boat” helps teachers to meet students’ needs.
So far this year, I have spoken with students at several Oklahoma universities who are completing their student-teaching experiences. When I meet with future educators, I remind them that teaching is far more complex than it appears from the outside. Educators must demonstrate empathy, self-regulation, adaptability, and focus, all while balancing the diverse needs of their students. The job demands are considerable. I tell future teachers that despite the complexity of the work, teaching is one of the most interesting, intellectually engaging, and deeply rewarding careers. Every day presents opportunities to solve problems, build relationships, and witness growth in our students and in ourselves.
The True Measure of Our Schools
While it is true that our state ranks low nationally for academic performance, the true measure of our education system is not captured solely in national rankings. It is important to remember that Oklahoma is home to many high-performing schools, innovative district models, and nationally recognized educators. Serving as Oklahoma’s Ambassador of Teaching has given me a front-row seat to the incredible work happening in classrooms across our state. I recently visited an Agriculture Mechanics classroom where students studied every part of a flatbed trailer. From that trailer, they made their own blueprints and started building one of their own. They let me observe as they cut the metal for the frame and discussed with me the type of welding they would do to be sure the trailer was strong enough for the load it would carry. They showed me the math involved with the project and explained why one material was chosen over another. This learning experience focuses on integrating cumulative skills the students have learned over the years in other classrooms while building marketable expertise for their future.
Additionally, I recently visited an art class where students were learning pottery and creating custom-designed soup bowls. The pieces were carefully glazed and fired, culminating in a special “soup dinner fundraiser,” where the finished bowls are sold. All proceeds from the bowl purchases are then donated to local food pantries, effectively turning the students’ ceramic skills into a direct effort to combat food insecurity.
These students learned the entire pottery process but also experienced the challenge of working on a product with a purpose. They acquired key entrepreneurial skills in areas like product management, quality control, and fundraising. For many children, teachers are the adults with whom they spend the most waking hours each day, giving educators an extraordinary influence on students’ lives. I have seen teachers spend evenings and weekends finding new ways to make learning relevant and accessible. Teachers represent the very definition of resilience, managing heavy workloads and complex classroom dynamics with creativity and care day in and day out.
The Power of Teaching
The most profound influence a teacher has often lies in these daily, intentional moments: listening carefully, offering timely praise, acknowledging effort, and modeling curiosity and critical thinking. These small acts build trust that enables learning and shape the character of the next generation. Since I first entered the classroom, I have believed that my best days were those when I connected with every single student, a goal I held even when I taught more than 175 students a day. These daily connections affirm the purpose that first drew me to the profession. As Ambassador of Teaching, my focus is clear: to help ensure we are recruiting and retaining high-quality educators who feel supported and valued in every district across our state.
Author Bio
As Oklahoma’s 2025-2026 Teacher of the Year, Melissa Evon is currently the state’s Ambassador of Teaching. She is also a teacher at Elgin High School.
