Harrisburg, PA — Interim Acting Secretary of Education Angela Fitterer today announced that Pennsylvania’s 2025 Teacher of the Year, Ashlie Crosson, has been named as one of four finalists for National Teacher of the Year by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO).
“We take pride in our Pennsylvania educators, and it’s exciting to see one of our own recognized in this way on the national stage,” said Interim Acting Secretary Angela Fitterer. “We applaud Ashlie Crosson’s dedication and commitment to her students and school community, and we are excited to cheer her on and celebrate with her as she takes on this tremendous honor of being selected as a National Teacher of the Year finalist.”
Crosson, an English teacher at Mifflin County High School, teaches Advanced Placement language and composition, English 10, and Survival Stories, an elective that approaches global humanitarian crises from a youth perspective. She also advises the journalism program that publishes the school newspaper and district magazine. Her bio can be found on CCSSO’s National Teacher of the Year website.
If named National Teacher of the Year, she will spend the next year serving as an ambassador for education and an advocate for teachers and students across the country.
Crosson joins three other finalists, with the National Teacher of the Year being named in the spring:
- Mikaela Saelua, high school English teacher and CCSSO’s 2025 American Samoa Teacher of the Year
- Janet Renee Damon, high school history teacher and CCSSO’s 2025 Colorado Teacher of the Year
- Jazzmyne Townsend, K-5 English language arts instructional coach and CCSSO’s 2025 District of Columbia Teacher of the Year
CCSSO’s National Teacher of the Year program identifies exceptional teachers across the country, celebrates their work in and outside the classroom, and, through one-of-a-kind professional development opportunities, helps them amplify their voices and empowers them to take part in policy discussions at the state and national level.
More information about the 2025 State Teachers of the Year and CCSSO’s National Teacher of the Year Program, including the 2025 State Teacher of the Year Cohort and bios of the other finalists, is available on CCSSO’s National Teacher of the Year website.