John F. Kennedy Middle School eighth-grade Language Arts and Honors teacher Jennifer Gruca has been named the 2025 Illinois State Board of Education Far South Suburbs Regional Teacher of the Year, an honor recognizing her excellence in teaching and leadership and support of JFK’s learners.
Gruca is now one of 13 finalists for the Illinois Teacher of the Year Award which will be announced later this school year.
JFK Principal Amandeep Hundal and ISBE leaders surprised Gruca earlier this week with the announcement over a Zoom call.
“I was shocked,” Gruca said.
In her 21 years of teaching, Gruca has cultivated a classroom where students fall in love with writing and literature through innovative learning experiences mixed with students’ interests and the power of storytelling.
“She is an amazing teacher who allows students to express themselves in creative ways,” Hundal said.
The veteran teacher promotes literacy through local and global collaborations.
She developed a global collaboration program connecting her ELA classes with students in Portugal, Türkiye, Albania, North Macedonia, and Moldova.
“I believe there is always something more to learn and grow as a researcher,” Gruca said after winning the honor. “There are places to explore.”
She also organizes workshops for all eighth-grade students at JFK led by artists, including songwriters, authors, motivational speakers, poets, and community members living in the Chicagoland area.
Gruca has received numerous honors in recognition of her teaching service, including a Teacher of the Month award presented by WGN Chicago News Television and the 2020 WE Teachers Award presented by Walgreens.
She is a proud Fellow with the Transatlantic Educators Dialogue (TED) Program and a Global Learning Fellow with the NEA Foundation where she just concluded her field study in Costa Rica in 2024.
“This honor means that I can continue to grow as an educator and have an opportunity to celebrate great teachers,” Gruca said.
Gruca was nominated by her mentor and current ISBE Illinois Teacher of the Year, Dr. Rachael Mahmood.
And now this honor puts Gruca in a cohort of teachers who are making a meaningful impact in Illinois schools.
“I am now looking forward to meeting the other recipients from Illinois to share and collaborate to strengthen practices and research in education and child development,” Gruca said.
ISBE received a record number of nominations and applications for the 2025 Teacher of the Year and Those Who Excel Awards.
Three Liberty Elementary School teachers are recipients of this year’s Those Who Excel Award and they include:
April Benish, fourth-grade teacher, Award of Special Recognition
Diane Demos Spielman, music teacher, Award of Meritorious Service
Kimberly Collier-Jefferson, fourth-grade teacher, Award of Excellence
A committee of administrators, teachers, educational service personnel, student support personnel, and past Illinois Teachers of the Year selected this year’s awardees.
State Superintendent of Education Dr. Tony Sanders will select the 2025 Illinois Teacher of the Year from the finalists later this spring.
All awardees will be honored at the annual banquet on Saturday, May 17, 2025.