Skokie, Evanston Educators Shine At Illinois State Teacher Awards

BLOOMINGTON, IL — Teachers at Evanston and Skokie high schools were among those honored at the 2024 Those Who Excel and Illinois Teacher of the Year banquet last month.

Amy Moore, a photography and video teacher at Evanston Township High School, and Dillin Randolph, an English teacher at Niles West High School, were among four Cook County Co-Regional Teachers of the Year and 15 finalists for teacher of the year picked by the Illinois State Board of Education.

Tony Sanders, the state superintendent of education, expressed his deep appreciation for the 2024 Illinois Teacher of the Year cohort.

"These 15 teachers have displayed unparalleled excellence, service, and leadership within and beyond their classrooms," Sanders said earlier this year. "Each of these teachers has a powerful story and message to share, and I am proud to recognize their efforts and provide a platform to elevate their voices."

Moore, currently teaches four levels of video production classes at ETHS, said there are few jobs in the world that are as creative as teaching.

"Every day we get to invent what we do, everything from choosing the film that I show a kid to what project we're going to work on," Moore said in a district video released last month. "It is like an artwork in itself to create a program and curriculum."

Moore's career in teaching began when she was 18 and attending college in New Orleans, she said. She began teaching prisoners in Louisiana after she interviewed a law professor who was involved in pro bono efforts to secure their release for the school paper.

Randolph, is currently a doctoral student at the Department of Education Policy, Organization, and Leadership at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He was previously a Teach Plus Illinois fellow and was among a dozen teachers honored with a 2021 Early Career Educator of Color Leadership Award from the National Council of Teachers of English.

Working with a Niles North English teacher and District 219's chief equity officer, Randolph developed a new class called Stories of the African Diaspora, which was approved in 2022. In an editorial later that year, Randolph said the College Board's description of its African American Studies curriculum was a cause for concern.

"I worry that, as teachers, we selectively highlight the trauma of Black people for educational purposes. I worry that students and teachers have grown tired of being inundated with those same painful stories. I know that I have," Randolph said. "I also worry that most of our African American history curriculum focuses heavily on Black people’s contributions to American history as victims rather than victors in an everlasting battle to overcome oppression."

More than 1,000 people attended the board's 50th annual Those Who Excel and Teacher of the Year Awards banquet on May 18 in Bloomington-Normal, which honored a total of 488 educators from across the state.

"With your expertise, students grasp not only the facts, but also critical thinking skills, empowering them to navigate complexities and contribute meaningfully to society. Through your mentorship, students develop empathy, resilience and a sense of social responsibility, essential for shaping a better future," Gov. J.B. Pritzker said in a message to honorees.

"Ten years from now, some may not remember the Pythagoras theorem or the numbers of syllables in iambic pentameter, but what they will remember is how you made them feel, how you believed in them, until they learn to believe in themselves," Pritzker said. "And that'll last for the rest of their lives."

Rachael Mahmood, a fifth-grade teacher at Georgetown Elementary School in Indian Prairie Community Unit School District 204, was named the 2024 Illinois Teacher of the Year.

"It's not the grand initiatives or projects that define us," Mahmood said in her acceptance speech, "but the moments of transformation we witness in our students — their journey from doubt to self-belief, from struggle to triumph."

Mahmood is due to begin a state-funded ambassadorship in July, representing Illinois in the National Teacher of the Year program. The year-long paid sabbatical accompanying the award began with 2021 Illinois Teacher of the year Justin Johnson, the Niles West band director.

Steven Isoye, the chair of the Illinois State Board of Education, the retired superintendent of District 219 and the 1998 Illinois Teacher of the Year, said the banquet is more than a one-night celebration — it also a gateway to new opportunities.

“The Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year program holds deep significance because it fosters lifelong connections and opportunities for growth," Isoye said. "We are honored to recognize remarkable educators from across Illinois who form the collective heartbeat of the education profession, igniting students’ minds and building bridges to brighter tomorrows.”