DES MOINES — The Iowa Department of Education named nine teachers from across the state as the 2026 Iowa Regional Teachers of the Year. Representing Iowa’s nine education regions, each teacher was selected for exemplary instructional practices and their significant contributions to K-12 education in Iowa.

The 2026 Iowa Regional Teachers of the Year are Allison Pargeon, Marissa Moore, Tony Onesto, Kelly Myers, Gregory Barord, Jennifer Ries, Dawn Rheingans, Stephanie Pritts and Kristi Mentink.

“We are proud to recognize nine outstanding educators from all corners of the state in our second-ever Iowa Regional Teachers of the Year designation,” said Iowa Department of Education Director McKenzie Snow. “Like their colleagues across Iowa, these exceptional teachers partner with families to provide all learners with what they need to meet high expectations and realize their incredible potential. The Department, alongside each school community and education region, thanks and congratulates Iowa’s 2026 Regional Teachers of the Year for their expertise, dedication and care, putting students at the center of all they do.”

Educators, administrators, students, families and other stakeholders submitted nominations for the Iowa Regional Teachers of the Year designation. In partnership with teachers and education leaders across Iowa, nine teachers were selected, representing a variety of schools, grade levels, subjects, endorsements, and pathways to the teaching profession, with expertise spanning English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Special Education, English Language Learners, World Languages, Fine Arts, Marine Biology and more. Each of these outstanding teachers will now advance as a finalist for the 2026 Iowa Teacher of the Year award, to be announced later this month.

Established in 1958, the prestigious Teacher of the Year award honors an Iowa teacher who advances student learning through evidence-based instruction, empowers students with multiple pathways to postsecondary success, learns from and invests in fellow educators and serves students in partnership with families.

Last year, Melanie Bloom, an agriculture educator from Sioux Central Community School District and 2025 Prairie Lakes Regional Teacher of the Year, was named the 2025 Iowa Teacher of the Year. The Iowa Teacher of the Year serves as an ambassador for the Iowa Department of Education and a liaison for educators across the state.

Information on the achievements of each of the nine 2026 Iowa Teachers of the Year is included below:

Central Rivers Regional Teacher of the Year 

Allison Pargeon, Montezuma Community School District 

Pargeon, a mathematics and computer science teacher at Montezuma Junior High and High School, has 26 years of experience engaging students in upper-level courses, including algebra, calculus, statistics and computer science. She has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics education and applied computer science from William Penn University and a master’s degree in mathematics with a secondary teaching emphasis from the University of Northern Iowa. Pargeon also teaches college-level math and statistics and instructs pre-service teachers in algebra and geometry to prepare them to teach in K-8 classrooms. She is a former recipient of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching award and serves the district beyond the classroom as a grant writer, computer science career development liaison, National Honor Society sponsor and cheer coach. Pargeon believes that for students to be truly engaged, they must have fun and see how what they are learning is relevant to their lives.