David Armstrong

Tell us why you became a teacher

I became a teacher because I believe education changes trajectories. I have seen students who thought they were finished walk across a stage and reclaim their future. Teaching is not just delivering content. Teaching is building systems of hope, restoring dignity, and refusing to give up on young people when the world already has. I teach because someone has to believe in them first.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

After the Joplin tornado, many of my at-risk students lost homes, stability, and hope. School became more than academics, it became anchor and recovery. We taught in borrowed spaces, helping students rebuild belief in themselves. A year later, I sat behind President Obama and watched them cross the graduation stage. In that moment, resilience had a face and it was my students’.

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would invest the $25,000 into our school’s student pantry and commit it to sustaining that program for the rest of my career. Many of my students come to school facing food insecurity. When a student knows there is food waiting and someone who cares, it changes everything. Education begins with meeting human needs, and this would allow us to keep that door of support open for years to come.