“Our Teacher of the Year program celebrates individual teachers, but it also praises the work of all of our educators,” said Kirsten Baesler, ND Superintendent of Public Instruction, at the announcement of the 2025 ND Teacher of the Year during a ceremony at the state Capitol on Friday, Sept. 27. “The purpose of this award, of this recognition in its origination was to lift up not only individuals who are teachers, but to lift up the teaching profession and encourage North Dakotans to give education the respect and status it deserves.”
This year’s finalists – Kendall Bergrud, a math teacher from Wachter Middle School in Bismarck; Macie Harris-Nelson, a music teacher for Kenmare Elementary; Ashley Nudell, who teaches family and consumer science at Lisbon High School; and Kayla Tatro, who teaches English, math, science, music and technology for Roosevelt Public School in Carson – are shining examples of all the amazing work that goes on in classrooms all across our state. But there can be only one winner, so it was Baesler’s honor to let a crowded Memorial Hall know who the North Dakota Teacher of the Year was for 2025.
“I don't have an envelope to open,” Baesler said, “We're not the Oscars, but I will just come right out and announce that the 2025 North Dakota Teacher of the Year is Mr. Kendall Bergrud, of Bismarck.”
“As this whole journey started, my greatest fear was having to stand up front and give a speech,” Bergrud said in his acceptance speech. “My expertise is speaking to middle school students, which is a challenge in itself. I kept telling myself, you can speak in front of middle schoolers. There's no reason why you can't speak in front of a crowd of adults.”
Beyond the group that was assembled in the Capitol on that day, which included his fellow finalists, their friends and families, former state Teachers of the Year, Gov. Doug Burgum, several Bismarck legislators, and a contingent of students from Wachter, Bergrud sent special praise to all his fellow educators. “I am honored and humbled to be standing here today,” he said, “but every educator in North Dakota deserves this honor. As I am not above the rest of you, as I know how hard each and every educator works across the state.”
Governor Burgum thanked all our state’s educators in his remarks as well, saying, “To all the teachers across the state, I say thank you for supporting lifelong learning. Because you're teaching our students to keep an open mind and to be curious at every age, and this will benefit them for the rest of their lives.”
Sara Medalen, a Title I reading and math instructor from Minot and the 2020 ND Teacher of the Year, spoke on behalf of ND United and President Nick Archuleta. In her remarks, Medalen shared several hilarious stories she’d collected from this year’s finalists of the “everyday joys of teaching that really just don’t happen in any other profession,” after sharing one of her own.
“It’s not just academic moments, but the moments of joy, the moments of hilarity,” Medalen said. “The moments when teachers look at each other and say, ‘You just can't make this stuff up!’ Like this week at my school, when a student brought a dead squirrel to school in his backpack for Show & Share. You can’t make that up. Seriously, we say things in this profession that you would never hear in any other workplace like, ‘No, honey! Stop! It's glue stick, not lipstick.’ ‘Stop licking your shoe!’ ‘Why is your toe in your ear?’”
Medalen closed her remarks by thanking Governor Burgum, Superintendent Baesler and North Dakota United for uplifting, supporting and recognizing teachers, and sent a special dedication to our four finalists. “Ashley, Kayla, Macie and our 2025 North Dakota Teacher of the Year Kendall, you are inspirational,” she said. “Congratulations. Keep shining bright. North Dakota needs your light.”
North Dakota’s 2024 Teacher of the Year Sheila Peterson is also an educator at Wachter in Bismarck, and worked diligently with Bergrud in building their school’s Peer to Peer program that launched just a few years ago. During her speech, Peterson pointed out that a group of students who were seated in the front row at the ceremony were all wearing special t-shirts they had made in honor of their favorite teacher.
“This is how much they love this guy,” Peterson said, as she asked the students to turn around and show everyone their shirts with Bergrud’s photos printed on them. “We were on our Peer to Peer bus last year, going on a field trip, and our kids were allowed to have cell phones because we had to be able to be in contact with them all over the Pumpkin Patch with 90 kids. And I look and these kids are taking like little snaps of Mr. Bergrud and I'm like, ‘What are you guys doing? And they're like, well, we've got a Bergrud Snapchat account. … They had Snaps of him eating his lunch. He wears these things we call ‘pepper steppers.’ When he gets upset when he's coaching, he pepper steps, and they've got pictures of the pepper stepping.”
Peterson said the Snapchat account and t-shirts were symbolic of how much they adore Mr. Bergrud. “These kids love him so much that you can't get them out of their room,” she said. “And he's going to be that story for you guys and how you guys carry your life. The things that he's taught you will always be instilled in who you are, and that's why it was so important to me that I wanted them to be a part of this day, because you are going to be a part of them for the rest of their lives.”
Quote byKendall Bergrud , 2025 North Dakota Teacher of the Year
Bergrud closed the ceremony with a few remarks after being presented with this year’s award and the traveling trophy that is adorned with the names of each year’s winner since 1963. He took the opportunity to praise all our state’s educators and to offer them this challenge: “As teacher leaders, I ask you this question,” Bergrud said. “What are you doing to create a movement in your school or even across the state to impact North Dakota students? We have the ability to start a movement and make a difference in the lives of not just one student, but all students.”
He closed his remarks and the ceremony by reminding both educators and students just how important the work they are doing now is for the future of everyone. “To my fellow teachers and leaders, remember that the impact we make goes beyond the classroom,” Bergrud said. “We're shaping futures, one lesson at a time. To our students, know that your potential is limitless. Embrace challenges, seek knowledge, and never stop dreaming. Here's to many more moments of learning and growing for ourselves and our students. Great educators make an impact that lasts a lifetime. Thank you.”
