The hallmarks of a state dinner were present: sumptuous floral arrangements adorning the White House, the first lady arriving in a floor-length sequin gown, and members of Congress and cabinet secretaries mingling with the attendees. But the guest of honor was not the President of France or the Prime Minister of Japan.
It was Missy Testerman from Rogersville City School in rural Tennessee.
Jill Biden, the first lady, kicked off a new format for presenting the National Teacher of the Year award on Thursday, welcoming this year’s winner, Ms. Testerman, and dozens of other teachers from across the country to the House White with a ceremony that emulates the pomp normally reserved for foreign dignitaries.
Biden, who kept her day job as an English teacher while serving as first lady and worked to support White House community colleges, spoke in support of teachers unions in her opening speech and emphasized the need to help educators after the pandemic. of Covid-19.
“Tonight we celebrate you because teaching is not just a job, it is a calling,” Dr. Biden said, adding, “Answering this call to service is itself an act of hope.”
Ms. Testerman, an English as a Second Language teacher who has worked as a first and second grade teacher for 30 years, also spoke, discussing the importance of her profession.
“As an English as a Second Language teacher, my students are all immigrants to our country or first-generation Americans born to immigrant parents,” Ms. Testerman said. “Hearing about the experiences of my students and their families reminds me daily of what a privilege it is to be an American and what a privilege it is to attend a public school in this country.”
The State Board of School Directors, which oversees the awards program, has honored finalists and winners at the White House nearly every year since 1952, according to the board’s website. Dr. Biden has presided over the awards ceremony every year of President Biden’s term. (Mr. Biden, who was returning from a trip to North Carolina, appeared briefly, reflecting on his days teaching law and telling professors: “You are the kite strings that lift our national ambitions.”)
This year’s ceremony evolution came complete with floral arrangements incorporating irises – the state flower of Tennessee – and classroom-themed decor. Guests dined on a menu that included lobster ravioli and honey poached apple mousse, and were welcomed by the U.S. Army Choir with Army and Air Force strings.
Miguel A. Cardona, Secretary of Education, told those present that the event was intended to give “our teachers a level of national respect that they have long deserved.”
In total, 57 teachers, including former award winners, attended on Thursday, according to a guest list released by the White House. In addition to the honor, selected teachers are also invited to a year-long professional development program.
Ahead of the event, the White House announced new measures aimed at encouraging higher salaries for teachers and highlighted changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, a centerpiece of Biden’s effort to reduce student debt, which allows public employees , like teachers, have their federal student loan debt forgiven after 10 years.
Biden, a teacher for more than 30 years and a member of the National Education Association, has intervened frequently in education policy, especially during the transition back to in-person learning as the Covid crisis eased. She also led an effort to make community college tuition free, although the legislation she helped write did not survive in Congress.
Biden has renewed his call for free community colleges as a policy priority in his budget for the next fiscal year, but the proposal has little chance of becoming law with Republicans in control of the House.
