Ten KIPP Public School Teachers Honored With $10,000 Award for Classroom Excellence
Contact: Debra Wexler, dwexler@kipp.org, 929-729-0375
New York, NY (May 8, 2026) — The KIPP Foundation today named 10 winners of the 2026 Harriett Ball Excellence in Teaching award, each receiving $10,000 in recognition of their profound impact in the classroom. Selected from more than 8,000 K–12 teachers across the national network of KIPP Public Schools, these honorees embody the highest standards of instructional excellence and community-centered leadership. This year’s winners were announced as part of celebrations marking Teacher Appreciation Week.
“There is no greater force in a child’s education than an excellent teacher who believes in them completely,” said Shavar Jeffries, CEO of the KIPP Foundation. “This year’s Harriett Ball winners are producing the kind of results that change the course of students’ lives, and those outcomes are no accident — they are a direct reflection of the skill, dedication, and heart these educators bring to their classrooms.”
Harriett Ball Excellence in Teaching award winners are chosen based on their track record of improving student achievement, their school and classroom leadership, their belief that every child is capable of greatness — and their commitment to delivering on that promise every day.
This year’s winners include:
- Hannah Deremo (KIPP Chicago) has spent nine years at KIPP One Primary building a kindergarten classroom that transforms early literacy outcomes for her students. At the beginning of the year, 79% of her students were well below grade-level benchmarks on national early literacy assessments, but she cut that number in half by midyear. In decoding, the results are even more striking: she moved students from 96% below grade-level at the start of the year to 83% at-or-above benchmark by midyear. A KIPP veteran who mastered Spanish to better serve her multilingual students, Deremo also serves as Grade Level Lead and Literacy Instructional Chair.
- Darricka Jackson (KIPP Baltimore), a third-grade ELA teacher and instructional coach at KIPP Harmony Academy, delivers exceptional results in her own classroom while helping to lift achievement across her entire grade level. In 2024-25, her students scored more than 11 percentage points above the Baltimore City average on Maryland’s state ELA assessment. A 10-year KIPP veteran, Jackson also founded her school’s first cheerleading squad, using it as a platform for student empowerment, self-advocacy, and community.
- Darbie Jean Baptiste (KIPP Massachusetts), a sixth-grade ELA teacher at KIPP Academy Boston, is one of the most accomplished literacy educators in the KIPP network. By midyear, her students had already surpassed their full-year reading growth target — the kind of accelerated progress that puts children on a real path to academic excellence. Jean Baptiste’s classroom has become a national model for literacy instruction. The KIPP Foundation has filmed her teaching for use in professional development across the network, and educators from around the country have sought out her classroom to observe her practice firsthand.
- Rachel Leeds (KIPP DC), a fourth-grade teacher at KIPP DC Promise Academy, consistently delivers results that far outpace citywide outcomes. In 2024-25, 75% of her students scored at level 3 or higher on DC’s annual ELA exams and 81% on math exams — exceeding city averages by 16 percentage points and 22 percentage points, respectively. A 10-year KIPP veteran, Leeds is known for her culturally responsive instruction, rigorous use of student data, and deep investment in the whole child.
- Ijnanya “Fatima” Minor (KIPP NorCal), a kindergarten teacher at KIPP University Park Elementary in Stockton, California, has accomplished something remarkable: for two years running, every single one of her students has finished the year reading at-or-above grade level on early literacy assessments — in a classroom where fewer than 20% of students typically begin the year at that benchmark. A founding teacher at her school, Minor also serves as Resident Mentor and Grade Level Lead, helping her school finish the 2024-25 school year with the highest kindergarten literacy rate in KIPP’s national network.
- Casey Ryan (KIPP New Orleans), a first-grade teacher at KIPP Believe Primary, has spent a decade transforming early literacy outcomes for the students who need it most. Intentionally assigned students who begin the year furthest behind, Ryan consistently more than doubles the percentage meeting or exceeding grade-level expectations on national early literacy assessments by year’s end, while cutting the percentage of students well below grade level by more than half. A Master Teacher who also serves as Grade Level Chair and leads K–2 intervention efforts, Ryan creates a space where all students feel successful.
- Priscilla Taoufik (KIPP NYC), a kindergarten teacher at KIPP Washington Heights Elementary School in Manhattan, has achieved something remarkable: for two years in a row, every single one of her students finished the year reading at-or-above grade level on national early literacy assessments. And she achieves this in a classroom where fewer than 15% of children typically begin the year on grade level. A 14-year KIPP veteran and child of immigrants, Taoufik brings a deep personal investment to the multilingual Washington Heights community where she teaches, and her classroom has become a model of what is possible in early elementary education.
- Luis Trejo (KIPP Texas), a first-grade STEM teacher at KIPP Connect Houston Primary School, has led his students to exceptional math outcomes: this year, more than 90% of Trejo’s students met their individualized math growth targets. He also helped lift achievement across his entire grade level as Math Department Lead, with all six first-grade classrooms seeing improvements on iReady math assessments during the first half of the school year. An 11-year KIPP veteran who grew up in the same Houston community he now serves, Trejo also coaches colleagues as Grade Level Chair, Department Chair, and Instructional Coach.
- Kathleen Vallejo (KIPP NYC), a seventh-grade math teacher at KIPP AMP Middle School in Brooklyn, has driven one of the most remarkable proficiency growth trajectories in the KIPP network. In 2024-25, 93% of her students passed the New York state math exam — more than double the 44% citywide pass rate — with 74% reaching the highest proficiency level. A former KIPP NYC student herself, Vallejo serves as Grade Level Chair and Dean, runs a daily lunch tutoring club, and brings an unwavering belief in her students that she experienced as a child in KIPP NYC schools.
- Lekeshi Wormley (KIPP Jacksonville), a 10th-grade biology teacher at KIPP Bold City High School, has set a new standard for academic achievement at her school — delivering the highest pass rate on any end-of-course exam in the school’s history. In 2024-25, 71% of her students passed Florida’s rigorous end-of-course biology exam, 11 percentage points above the 10th-grade pass rate statewide. As Science Department Chair and advisor for the Health Occupations Students of America chapter at her school, Wormley also prepares students for high-demand careers in the health sciences, connecting them to professional networks and opportunities after graduation.
Photo and video assets, including surprise reveal videos, are available here.
Learn more about this year’s winners here.
About the Award
The Harriett Ball Excellence in Teaching award honors the legacy of Harriett Ball, a visionary educator and mentor teacher. A 35-year teaching veteran of Houston and Austin public schools, Ball incorporated chants, songs, and movement to get her students engaged and learning in the classroom. In late 1992, Ball began mentoring Teach For America corps member Dave Levin in Houston. Inspired by her methods, Levin co-founded the first KIPP school in 1994.
About KIPP Public Schools
KIPP, the Knowledge Is Power Program, is a national network of 279 public charter schools dedicated to preparing students for success in college and life. KIPP Public Schools are tuition-free, and enrollment is open to all students. Started in 1994 as a middle-school program, KIPP has since expanded to enroll nearly 125,000 students in pre-K through high school, and it operates schools in 21 states and Washington, D.C.
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