A Havertown educator now holds the country’s top teaching honor. Leon Smith, who has taught at Haverford High School for his entire 25-year career, was named 2026 National Teacher of the Year by the Council of Chief State School Officers — beating out 55 other finalists representing every state and several U.S. territories, and giving Pennsylvania the title for a second straight year.

Smith teaches AP U.S. History and AP African American Studies, the latter a course he pushed to add after his students asked for it. He calls his approach to the classroom that of a “warm demander,” setting a high bar for students while making sure they feel supported enough to clear it. That philosophy traces back to his own high school years, when having a Black student teacher for the first time gave him a model for the kind of educator he wanted to become.

Off the clock, Smith coaches Haverford’s freshman basketball team and has built out a homegrown teacher-training pipeline for the district, aimed at getting more local students into the profession themselves. Winning the national title now puts him in front of audiences well beyond his own classroom over the coming months, including an unexpected moment on national television when NBA great Julius Erving showed up to congratulate him — a surprise connection, since Erving once lived just blocks from the school.

Pennsylvania’s education secretary, Dr. Carrie Rowe, praised Smith as representative of the caliber of teachers across the state, citing his work training colleagues in culturally responsive teaching and mentoring newer staff throughout the district.