EdTech Insiders Spotlights 2025 Teacher Leader Impact Award Winners
A recent episode of EdTech Insiders spotlighted the 2025 Teacher Leader Impact Awards, recognizing educators who are transforming their schools and communities in ways that go beyond day-to-day classroom teaching. The conversation with Adam Geller, founder and CEO of Edthena, and several awardees underscored how meaningful recognition and innovative practices can strengthen the profession at large.
Why recognition of teacher leaders matters
- Highlight ways teachers lead beyond their own classrooms. Adam emphasized that teacher impact extends through the community of practice that teachers represent within a building. The awards were designed to celebrate educators who influence peers, lead initiatives, and build stronger learning environments for all students.
- Keep the focus on solving real challenges. Reflecting on the evolution of education technology since 2011, Adam noted that lasting tools succeed because they address genuine problems rather than existing for technology’s sake. He pointed to the development of AI Coach as an example, born from the need to give teachers more accessible feedback between coaching visits, helping them continuously reflect and grow without adding to their workload.
- Showcase innovative practices from the field. Winners shared powerful strategies for collaboration and student engagement. For example, instructional coach Betsy Springer of Gull Lake Community Schools described creating virtual “learning walks” so online teachers can observe each other’s classrooms. Teachers, she said, never keep it to three to five minutes because the exchanges spark rich professional dialogue.
- Remind edtech developers to listen to teachers. Several honorees highlighted the importance of responsiveness from product teams. Teacher LeeAnn Caradine of Travis Unified School District urged companies to invite educators directly into design processes. Her perspective reinforced the broader theme that technology should amplify, not complicate, teachers’ work.
Edthena’s Teacher Leader Impact Awards aim to illustrate how honoring innovation and leadership among educators builds momentum for positive change. To explore the full set of conversations with award winners, listen to EdTech Insiders: Teacher Leader Impact Awards 2025.
