JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville educator with three decades of teaching experience has been named Preschool Educator of the Year by the Florida Association for the Education of Young Children.
Kerstin Teutonico, known affectionately to her students as “Mrs. T,” has spent more than 20 years teaching at the Jewish Community Alliance’s Michele Block Gan Yeladim Preschool & Kindergarten, where she focuses on developing children academically, emotionally and socially.
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“I always had a connection with children. I always was easily one of their people they always trusted, who they came to with their stories and their questions,” Teutonico said.
The state recognition celebrated her 30-year commitment to early childhood education. For Teutonico, the award brings both honor and responsibility.
“From that point on, I have been trying to look at everything I do every day in the classroom to live up to that responsibility that comes with an award like that,” she said.
Teutonico emphasized that her work extends beyond individual student success to create wider community benefits.
“It is why I still teach after 30 years of teaching in early years of childhood,” she said. “It feels like we make a difference in the whole community and the whole country if everybody gets a quality childhood education.”
Her approach to early childhood education combined academic instruction with emotional and social development, creating a comprehensive learning environment for her young students.
At the Michele Block Gan Yeladim Preschool & Kindergarten, Teutonico continued to shape the next generation of learners, demonstrating that quality early childhood education can have lasting impacts on both individual students and the broader community.