Minnesota Teacher of the Year finalists named

Tuesday, Education Minnesota announced its 10 finalists for the Minnesota Teacher of Year award.

The teachers were selected by a panel that included leaders in the areas of education, government, business and nonprofits. The finalists were selected from a pool of 36 semifinalists. A total of 135 teachers were nominated for the award this year.

The interview panel is set to interview each finalist on June 13.

This year's finalists are:

• DeWayne Combs of Murray Middle School, St. Paul Public Schools,
• Katie Coulson of Thomas Lake Elementary School, Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District,
• Shannon Finnegan of Hopkins High School, Hopkins Public Schools,
• Qorsho Hassan of Gideon Pond Elementary School, Burnsville-Eagan-Savage School District,
• Maya Kruger of St. Anthony Middle School, St. Anthony-New Brighton School District,
• Ryan Larson of Pine City Junior/Senior High School, Pine City Public Schools,
• Omar McMillan of Richfield STEM School, Richfield Public Schools,
• Rachel Steil of Stillwater Area High School, Stillwater Area Public Schools,
• Maria Villavicencio of Eden Lake Elementary School, Eden Prairie Schools,
• Katie Watland of Lake Park Audubon High School, Lake Park Audubon School District.

Because of the COVID-19 outbreak, The Minnesota Teacher of the Year banquet scheduled for May 3 has been postponed.