2022 National Teacher of the Year Continues Representing AFA

AFA’s 2022 National Teacher of the Year (TOY), Nancy Parra-Quinlan from Arizona, represented AFA as a professional ambassador at several educator conferences, such as the February Johnson Space Flight Center’s Space Exploration Educators Conference (SEEC), where she was joined by several other national TOYs in a conference session to promote all of AFA’s education programs: CyberPatriot, StellarXplorers, TOY, and Educator Grants.  Shown with Mrs. P-Q (as she is affectionately known by her students) at the SEEC conference are National TOYs:  Ashlie Blackstone-Smith (MI), 2nd place 2022 National TOY; Megan Tucker (VA), 2021 National TOY; Nancy; Mike Vargas (AZ), 2019 National TOY; and Kaci Heins (AZ when TOY; now KY), 2014 National TOY.

Parra-Quinlan was also selected as one of 100 teachers to be celebrated at Disneyland during National Teacher Appreciation Week. From the Disney Imagination Campus press release:

“One hundred teachers from across the nation were chosen to join The Walt Disney Company’s 100th Anniversary because of their extraordinary creativity and imagination. The educators were honored at the Disney Imagination Campus for bringing creativity and imagination to life in their curriculum, which aligns perfectly with Disney Imagination Campus’ mission of inspiring the next generation of creative thinkers and leaders through imagination-powered learning. The 100 were selected from more than 7,900 applicants and demonstrated the spirit of creativity and imagination in their classrooms to inspire students and play a key role in shaping the minds of America’s future leaders.”