BU Wheelock alum Takeru Nagayoshi has been named the 2020 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year. Nagayoshi has taught English, writing, and research classes at New Bedford High School for five years. He earned a BA in International Relations from Brown University and an EdM in Curriculum & Teaching from Boston University in 2011.

Nagayoshi joins Jamil Siddiqui (Wheelock’94), who teaches mathematics to in East Bridgewater, and Sydney Chaffee, a part-time instructor and mentor to BU Wheelock students, as members of our community who have been selected as Massachusetts Teacher of the Year, in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

Nagayoshi’s career as an educator began when he joined Teach For America (TFA) in 2014. His interest in advocating for education policy and law through an equity lens extends beyond the classroom: when not teaching, he coaches developing teachers and writes on education issues for local, state and national publications.

When Massachusetts Commissioner of Education Jeff Riley announced the Massachusetts Teacher of the Year winner earlier this month, he noted that Nagayoshi “works hard to prepare students for AP exams, but he also works hard to prepare them for life, helping them do research into subjects that matter to them, helping them learn from each other, and helping them deliver polished presentations, even as 9th graders. He helps students who aren’t even in his class anymore.”

At BU Wheelock, Nagayoshi’s former professors shared their congratulations and memories of his time at our college.

“After he received my comments on his final paper, he wrote me back a substantive letter sharing his own thoughts and responses to my comments, and I can’t think of another time in my career when a student has done that,” says Scott Seider, who was Nagayoshi’s advisor.

Teach for America executive director Josh Biber also offered his congratulations in an email to all corps members, writing: “I am so happy to share this collective pride point with you all, and I hope you will join me in congratulating Takeru on this amazing achievement.”