KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County. Share your story idea with Tod.
—
Jennifer Jones said there’s nothing particularly remarkable about her teaching style, but the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, or DESE, apparently disagreed.
Jones, an English teacher at Lee’s Summit West, was announced Thursday as the 2025 Missouri State Teacher of the Year during a pep rally at the school.
“I don't know that I'm that flashy of a teacher,” she said. “I'm certainly not a Tiktok-worthy teacher, an Instagram-worthy teacher. I'm a nuts-and-bolts-what-do-I-need-to-teach-you-and-how type of teacher. But I think it (the state teacher of the year honor) kind of validates that sort of approach to this work.”
A fellow Titans English teacher, Mary Beth Rich, nominated Jones, who was chosen from among nearly 70,000 public school educators in the state, as the Lee’s Summit R-7 School District’s Teacher of the Year last spring.
“Jen is an extremely humble person,” Rich said. “She works really hard, and I think this was just a great opportunity to showcase what a wonderful teacher she is in case the world didn't know that she's extraordinary.”
Jones acknowledged perhaps being a bit zanier than most teachers, but Rich says her enthusiasm for teaching creative writing inspires students to love creative writing, like her idea for Wacky Writing Wednesday.
“Every Wednesday, they would write for 20 minutes,” Rich said. “She would share her writing and the kids would share theirs. It was just a great opportunity just to write and share your love and writing.”
Jones, who is in her 20th year at Lee’s Summit West and 24th overall as a teacher, said her inspiration comes from her students and the dedication of other teachers.
“I don't know that what I do in my classroom is that different from the hard work of educators everywhere,” she said. “I may be a little bit zanier when I do it. I have an odd sense of humor and energy. But I am telling you, if you walk around this building and around this district, you're going to see teachers working hard, connecting with students, and getting the job done every day.”
Faculty and staff at Lee’s Summit West, where Jones started in the school’s second year, were told to wear an “It’s a great day to be a Titan” shirt for the pep rally.
Even if that was a ruse, it was indeed a great day to be a Titan as Jones received the statewide recognition.
DESE will recognize Jones and the other finalists for the Missouri Teacher of the Year along with the semifinalists and regional honorees during a banquet next month.
Additionally, Jones will be the Show-Me State’s nominee for the 2025 National Teacher of the Year.
Lee’s Summit R-7 announced in April that Jones had been selected as the district teacher of the year.
She was later chosen as one of six 2025 Regional Teacher of the Year winners from the Kansas City Regional Professional Development Center.
Outside the classroom, Jones serves as a teacher consultant for the Greater Kansas City Writing Project and also volunteers for The Cappies, an organization that honors the best in Kansas City-area high school theater.
Two other Kansas City-area teachers — Jessica Backs, a third-grade teacher at Sunrise Elementary in the Richmond R-XVI School District, and Lauren Hurst, a Spanish teacher at Raytown High School — were among the seven statewide finalists.
—