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ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Forty years into a teaching career that has reached classrooms in 47 states, Jefferson-Houston PreK-8 IB School AVID instructor Deedra Robinson stood in front of the Alexandria City School Board on Thursday and accepted the 2026 ACPS Teacher of the Year award.
Robinson, who plans to retire at the end of this school year, was honored alongside Jeanette Vinson, principal of George Washington Middle School, who was named the 2026 ACPS Principal of the Year. The two were recognized at a Thursday evening ceremony that began with a reception upstairs at 1340 Braddock Place and continued on the floor of the school board meeting room, where building-level Teacher of the Year nominees from each ACPS school were also celebrated.
"This is one of my favorite kind of times in the year," Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt told the room as she opened the recognitions. "We get an opportunity to recognize all of our wonderful teachers and principals."
For Robinson, the night was the third in a series of honors that began with a surprise assembly in the Jefferson-Houston gymnasium on April 8, when Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction Jenna Conway named her the 2027 Virginia Region 4 Teacher of the Year — making her the second consecutive ACPS educator to earn the regional distinction. On May 5, Gov. Abigail Spanberger hosted Robinson and the seven other regional winners at the Governor's Mansion. Two days later, ACPS announced she had been chosen as the division's Teacher of the Year.
"To be recognized as Principal of the Year is an honor," Vinson said in a video played during the meeting. "I can't believe it's me. I can't believe it's me. But I am very honored, and I am proud, and I believe this means a lot to our community, our students, our staff, our families, our community partners. I just want to say thank you."
A 40-year career
Robinson's career, which she traces to a moment helping her young son Christopher succeed in first grade, has spanned four decades. She joined Jefferson-Houston as its AVID elective teacher in 2021 and was selected as an AVID national staff developer in 2022. She has trained more than 3,000 educators across 47 states, mentors elementary AVID teachers and tutors, and has played a central role in implementing the AVID readiness program schoolwide at Jefferson-Houston. She has represented Alexandria as a trainer for the Science Community of Practice for more than 25 years, and her published curriculum resources are used in classrooms around the country.
In introducing Robinson on Thursday, Kay-Wyatt described her as exemplifying "what Teacher of the Year is all about, with an extraordinary dedication to academic rigor, equity and student empowerment."
"Her 40-year career is defined by how excellence, innovation and her heartfelt service shape generations of students and teachers," Kay-Wyatt said. "Ms. Robinson is a legacy builder in every sense and exemplifies the highest ideals of the teaching profession: excellence, resilience and transformative leadership."
Students featured in a video introduced before Robinson's recognition described what AVID — and Robinson — has meant to them.
"She challenges me to be great, and she teaches me how to be ready for my future and to be responsible and respectful to others," one student said. Another described how Robinson's lessons translate beyond the classroom: "I'm in middle school, but I know what colleges I want to go to because the opportunities and things that she's able to give us is just endless."
"There's a big difference in my test scores as I looked at it yesterday," another student said, "because I've learned how to really study and understand what my teachers are saying."
Robinson, in the video played during the meeting, returned to the theme of love.
"If you love kids, truly love them, then it makes the job easy because you treat them and see all potential that they have," she said. "It's not just about teaching. It's making those connections."
'We do this work together'
Vinson, named Principal of the Year, leads a staff of more than 200 and serves more than 1,400 students at George Washington Middle School. Kay-Wyatt described her as personifying the school's motto — "We do this work together" — and cited her embrace of project-based learning, recognized by the national nonprofit PBL Works as "leadership of PBL with purpose."
"Ms. Vinson fosters a school-wide culture of innovation, professional growth and equity," Kay-Wyatt said. "She is deeply committed to ensuring all students experience meaningful, authentic and connected learning as a lever for educational excellence."
Beyond the school walls, Vinson has forged community partnerships including a collaboration with the Alexandria Police Department on the Alexandria Initiative on Mentoring and a partnership with YELP Youth Services that provides weekly social-emotional groups for boys and girls during lunch.
A student featured in Vinson's recognition video described her as a daily presence in the building. "I have seen her ask a student if they are okay in the hallway," the student said, "and then when the student said they didn't feel that happy that day, she immediately got to work making that student's day better."
"She's basically like your hot cup of coffee," another student said.
Vinson, who joined ACPS in 2003 and previously served as the school's academic principal beginning in 2016, became acting principal of George Washington in December 2022 and was named permanent principal in January 2023. In the video, she credited her staff and former mentors.
"When I look around and look at the people I've learned from — my former principals — there is no way that I could be doing what I am doing without having the guidance and the mentorship and everything that I've learned," she said. "This is not easy work. It is not easy. But I'd rather do hard work with the people in this room than do easy work somewhere else."
Building-level honorees recognized
Before announcing the division-wide winners, Kay-Wyatt recognized building-level Teacher of the Year nominees from each ACPS school, calling them "among our educators at ACPS who go above and beyond to give their all each day to ensure every student in their classroom is provided with the social, emotional and academic support needed."
"We're deeply, deeply grateful for your service, proud of your accomplishments, and honored to celebrate you this evening," Kay-Wyatt said.
ACPS is expected to publish the full list of building-level nominees in the coming days.
