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Leon Smith | 2026 National Teacher of the Year - Show Notes

Jeremy Singer sits down with Leon Smith, the Council of Chief State School Officers' (CCSSO) 2026 National Teacher of the Year. Smith has spent his entire 25-year career at Haverford High School in Havertown, Pennsylvania, where he teaches AP U.S. History, AP African American Studies, African American studies, and 20th-century pop culture. He is also an AP mentor, coaches the freshman boys basketball team, and leads the School District of Haverford Township's Grow Your Own program, which works to diversify the educator workforce and build a stronger teacher pipeline.

Smith describes growing up as the son of two educators and starting high school without a single teacher who looked like him, until a student teacher in 10th grade changed that. He explains why a sense of belonging is essential to learning, how he’s adapting to teaching in the age of AI, and why he wants his AP students to embrace "nuance and complexity." He and Jeremy also address common critiques of Advanced Placement, including who AP is for and whether it's just memorization.

Key Highlights:

  • The power of representation. Smith recalls how seeing a Black male teacher in 10th grade inspired him to pursue teaching. Now, he sees firsthand how educators of color help students  feel seen and understood while exposing all students to different experiences and perspectives
  • Belonging comes before Bloom's. Students need to feel safe before they can engage in deeper learning. Smith explains how he builds relationships throughout the year, starting with a five-to-seven-minute morning circle with questions like what’s your favorite breakfast food or what do students value in a friend. He also follows up with personal check-ins with students during the year.
  • The benefits of experience in the classroom. The biggest change in 25 years as a teacher, Smith says, is confidence in being himself. When teachers bring their own stories and strategies, students feel free to be themselves too.
  • Designing for authentic work in the AI era. Smith collects early writing samples to learn each student's voice, has students write DBQs and long essays in class via a shared Google Doc he can see, and breaks major projects into benchmarks with check-ins so students don't panic and turn to shortcuts.
  • Teach research explicitly. Students won't know how to evaluate sources unless teachers show them. Smith gives them models, vetted databases, and metacognitive questions about what makes a source good.
  • Nuance in history. His favorite assignment is a Socratic seminar on Brown v. Board of Education. Students consider how the ruling overturned Plessy, while also resulting in the displacement of tens of thousands of Black teachers and principals.
  • AP is for more students than people think. Smith says students start out anxious and gain confidence as the year goes on, with the teacher acting as their coach. Earlier practice with primary sources and writing gives them a head start.
  • The "invisible knapsack." AP U.S. History's learning objectives let students use any relevant evidence they know, so teachers can draw on their own expertise and students don't have to give the same answers.

Referenced in the Episode:

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