by BLACK ENTERPRISE Editors
May 12, 2026
This award recognizes teachers who show strong academic results, leadership, and dedication to student success
Ten educators from the KIPP Public Charter Schools network are being honored for their outstanding classroom performance and student success during the 2026 Teacher Appreciation Week. The KIPP Foundation recently announced the winners of the 2026 Harriett Ball Excellence in Teaching Award. Each educator will receive a $10,000 prize for their impact on students and school communities.
This award recognizes teachers who show strong academic results, leadership, and dedication to student success within KIPP’s network of over 8,000 educators serving students across the country. According to KIPP CEO Shavar Jeffries, the chosen teachers meet “the highest standards of instructional excellence” and have achieved results that significantly benefit students’ futures.
“There is no greater force in a child’s education than an excellent teacher who believes in them completely,” Jeffries stated in a press release provided to BLACK ENTERPRISE. “This year’s Harriett Ball winners are producing the kind of results that change the course of students’ lives, and those outcomes are no accident — they are a direct reflection of the skill, dedication, and heart these educators bring to their classrooms.”
Among this year’s winners is Hannah Deremo from KIPP Chicago. Her kindergarten literacy instruction has greatly lowered the number of students reading below grade level. In Baltimore, Darricka Jackson helped third-grade English language arts students score more than 11 percentage points above the city average on Maryland’s state ELA exams.
Other recipients include Priscilla Taoufik and Ijnanya Minor, both kindergarten teachers whose classrooms have maintained 100% grade-level literacy outcomes for consecutive years, even with many students starting below benchmark standards. Seventh-grade math teacher Kathleen Vallejo also gained recognition after 93% of her students passed New York’s state math exam, which more than doubled the citywide pass rate.
The award pays tribute to Harriett Ball, the experienced Texas educator whose teaching methods inspired the founding of KIPP in 1994. Ball was known for using movement, chants, and engaging learning strategies in her classrooms. KIPP now operates 279 schools across 21 states and Washington, D.C., serving nearly 125,000 students from prekindergarten through high school.
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