[This article was originally delivered to subscribers of our Education Watch newsletter. Sign up now to receive Education Watch directly in your inbox.]
A high school calculus teacher whose focus on positive experiences happening in the classroom was named the 2023 National Teacher of the Year on Wednesday.
Rebecka Peterson, a math teacher at Union High School in Tulsa, is the first Oklahoma educator to receive the award since 1964. She’s been teaching for 14 years, the past 11 at Union, and has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mathematics.
Early in her career, she switched from teaching at the college level to high school — and the shock led her to start a blog called “One Good Thing,” where she and other math teachers post regular, positive updates.
As Oklahoma’s Teacher of the Year, she has spent the past year visiting all 77 counties across the state to interview teachers making a difference in the classroom for her Teachers of Oklahoma campaign.
Her efforts to promote respect and appreciation for the teaching profession come at a time of low teacher morale in the face of lagging investment in public education, post-pandemic difficulties and hateful rhetoric directed at educators.

Eleven of her former students have become teachers.
Congratulations for Peterson poured in Wednesday. Peterson is a proud immigrant of Swedish-Iranian descent and uses her experiences to connect with students.
As National Teacher of the Year, a contest organized by the Council of Chief State School Officers, she plans to use her platform to elevate the teaching profession nationwide.
What education news am I missing? Email me or send me a direct message.
— Jennifer Palmer
Recommended Reading
- Education plan moves back to square one after the Oklahoma House rejected amendments made by the Senate. The plan provides a teacher pay raise, funding for education and private school tuition tax credits. [News On 6]
- Teenage boys are struggling with suicidal thoughts and depression, a mental health crisis flying under the radar. [The Washington Post]
- While nearly every other sector of higher education is seeing fewer students enrolling, trade programs are booming. [The Hechinger Report]
- New classical charter school opening in Tulsa has ties to the sometimes controversial Hillsdale College, a private, conservative Christian liberal arts college in Michigan. [Tulsa World]
Tweet Watch
Help Us Make a Difference
Oklahoma needs high-quality investigative journalism. That is our mission at Oklahoma Watch. We produce stories that hold government and public officials accountable and that make transparent what some prefer to keep secret. We depend on financial support from readers like you to sustain our coverage. Help us make a difference.