Emporia State Names Class of 2026 Kansas Master Teachers

HOMETOWN INTEREST for Basehor, Blue Valley, Emporia, Geary County, Linwood, Manhattan, Newton, Ogden and Olathe.

Emporia, KS (02/11/2026) — Seven members of the Class of 2026 Kansas Master Teachers were named today (Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026). The teachers chosen for this annual award are:

Emily Chandler, fifth grade teacher at Fort Riley Elementary, USD 475 Geary County
Casey Ewy, eighth grade social studies teacher at Susan B. Anthony Middle School, USD 383 Manhattan-Ogden
Kathleen Gilliland, mathematics and robotics teacher at Emporia High School, USD 253 Emporia
Heather Hall, science and research teacher at Blue Valley West High School, USD 229 Blue Valley
Michelle Kelly, K-5 reading interventionist at Glenwood Ridge Elementary, USD 458 Basehor-Linwood
Rachel Tanney, gifted teacher at Heatherstone Elementary, Sunnyside Elementary and Madison Place Elementary, USD 233 Olathe
Kimberly Tate, seventh grade math teacher at Chisholm Middle School, USD 373 Newton

The 2026 Master Teachers will be honored on Master Teacher Day on Wednesday, April 1, at Emporia State University. As part of several recognition activities, the teachers will tour the National Teachers Hall of Fame, one room schoolhouse and participate in the How We Teach This Podcast. The teachers will then be honored during a social hour at 5:45 p.m. in Webb Hall Lobby of Emporia State's Memorial Union followed by the banquet and award ceremony at 6:30 p.m. in Webb Hall.

Tickets for the dinner cost $25, and reservations are required by Friday, March 20, 2026. For more information, go to www.emporia.edu/masterteacher.

Through the support of the Bank of America Charitable Foundation, each Master Teacher will be presented with a check for $1,000.

The recipients were selected by a committee including representatives from the Kansas Association of School Boards, Kansas State Board of Education, K-12 Kansas Principal Association, Kansas Parent Teacher Association, Kansas National Education Association, United School Administrators, Kansas Association of Teacher Educators - Kansas, and representatives of the 2025 Kansas Master Teacher class.

ESU established the Kansas Master Teacher awards in 1954. The awards are presented annually to selected teachers who demonstrate the attributes of exemplary professional educators.

Information on the 72 years of educators named Kansas Master Teachers is available at www.emporia.edu/masterteacher.

Since 1980, Bank of America has pledged more than $100,000 to permanently endow the Kansas Master Teacher awards.

About Emporia State University

Emporia State University offers a range of academic programs through its seven schools: Applied Health Sciences, Business and Technology, Humanities and Social Sciences, Library and Information Management and Library and Archives, Science and Mathematics and Visual and Performing Arts, along with The Teachers College.

ESU stands out for its innovative education practices. It ensures accessible education by offering in-state tuition rates to full-time undergraduate students from all lower-48 United States. Additionally, full-time undergraduates benefit from flat-rate tuition - students enrolled in 12 or more credit hours with at least one credit hour on campus pay a flat rate.

For more information on how to build your future at Emporia State University, please visit www.emporia.edu.