Anchorage Teacher One of 4 Finalists for National Teacher of the Year

An Anchorage teacher is one of four finalists for this year’s prestigious National Teacher of the Year award.

Danielle Riha, 51, teaches seventh- and eighth-grade students at the Alaska Native Cultural Charter School in the Anchorage School District. She was named the 2019 Alaska Teacher of the Year in October. That put her in the running for this year’s National Teacher of the Year award as Alaska’s official nominee.

Riha was named one of four finalists in the national competition on Wednesday. A committee selected her from a nationwide group of 57 nominated teachers. It’s the first time an Alaska teacher was picked as a finalist for National Teacher of the Year since 1995, according to the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development.

“I feel really excited,” Riha said. “Not just for me, but for my school.”

This year’s other finalists are Donna Gradel from Oklahoma, Kelly Harper from Washington, D.C., and Rodney Robinson from Virginia, said a statement from the Council of Chief State School Officers, the Washington,D.C.-based nonprofit that runs the award program.

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