Long before she was rewarded, she had already touched hundreds of students’ lives with her compassionate, charitable and warm-hearted teaching style. The award simply put a title on what her students and colleagues have known her as for years.
U.S. History teacher, Whitney Van Cleave, has just recently earned her very well-deserved recognition as Teacher of the Year for the 2025 school year.
“Mrs. Van Cleave is by far one of the hardest workers I know,” Principal Eric King said. “She is a professional in and out of the classroom. She brings her best daily to everyone here at Willis High School. We are lucky to have her, and she is very deserving of this award.”
Her inspiration to become an educator was having a teacher once, like her, who connected with and understood students to the fullest.
“I wanted to be a pyrotechnician for the Walt Disney Company. I had a wonderful English teacher my junior and senior year of high school who changed my plans,” Van Cleave said. “Her name is Susan Zachary, and she inspired me to change my mind and become a teacher. She had such a passion for teaching her subject but the best part about her was her ability to truly see and hear her students and she worked hard to not only teach them about English language and literature, but also help people become and feel like genuinely good human beings.”
While teaching an advanced course, Van Cleave has always been known to be very flexible with dual credit students and recognizes that they are the leaders on campus.
“Mrs. Van Cleave is very flexible and has a plethora of resources that are valuable to help you when help is needed,” junior Ariel Dominique said.
Former students of Van Cleave have an immense amount of gratitude for her teaching style and big heart, while also teaching an advanced course.
“Mrs. Van Cleave was by far the most understanding teacher I ever had,” senior Wyatt Hawkins said. “During what was an academically challenging year for me, she was always happy to assist me with due dates as long as I had a valid reason. I respected her as a person because as long as you were willing to put in the work with a good attitude, she would make sure you were taken care of.”
Throughout the handful of years Van Cleave has been employed on campus, she has walked through the door and given her one hundred and ten percent to her students every day.
“I am honored that my colleagues feel that I am deserving of the award this year,” Van Cleave said. “Teaching is so rewarding, but like anything worth doing, it comes with hard work and sacrifice. There are so many teachers and staff members in this building that put in hours upon hours of work every week and they sacrifice time with their families in order to make Willis High School a place where they have positive opportunities to learn and shape their futures. It is really nice when any of us are recognized for our dedication and our efforts.”
