Nishelle Henson ’14MS didn’t think much about the morning announcement several weeks ago  at Macon Middle School, in Franklin, North Carolina, where teachers were told there would be an indoor fire drill. During the drill, nearly 700 students and staff were supposed to practice taking attendance using their emergency protocol system. It wasn’t until one of her observant students noticed central office staff in the gym that he asked Henson if the gathering was actually a ruse for her “award thing.

Turns out, it was. The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, in partnership with the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, had named Henson the 2026 N.C. Western Regional Teacher of the Year. 

“When my principal announced that I was chosen, I was floored. They surprised me with my husband, Jon, and my two sons, Noah and Jacob, and I broke down into an ugly cry,” she said. “The current Western Regional and North Carolina teachers of the year came out and said wonderful things that I only half remember because I was in shock. When they dismissed the students back to class, I was bombarded by current and past students with hugs and congratulations. There were even more tears!”

As a middle school math teacher, Henson knows that a lot of students who enter her class feel fear, anxiety or dislike for the subject. That’s a feeling, she says, she can relate to having struggled with math herself during middle and high school. 

Being able to relate to her students who struggle with math in this personal way, she said, is something she believes makes her a stronger teacher. She also loves building relationships with her students, helping them feel safe with and build trust in her so they feel comfortable making mistakes, taking an interest in their lives outside the classroom and checking in on them when they’re home sick. 

Investing in her students as people and building these strong relationships is something Henson took away from her time in the NC State College of Education. 

“During my time in the College of Education, I learned the importance of building relationships with others. Whether it be with faculty, staff, students, parents or administration, it is important to build relationships everywhere you go,” she said. “To this day, I keep in touch with people from my cohort and former professors from my time at NC State. Just the other day, I reached out to a professor for help with something in my school and was immediately assisted.”

At Macon Middle School, Henson also does a lot of work to support beginning teachers, using observation, conference and planning practices she learned while she earned her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction—now known as Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum—from the College of Education. She credits one of her favorite courses, which focused on the process of meaningful coaching, as well as opportunities to hone her coaching skills while serving as a university supervisor for Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) students in the college with helping her to develop as a leader. 

“I chose the NC State College of Education because, after researching master’s programs, it felt like the perfect fit,” Henson said. “The program challenged me and helped me grow as a professional in that there were high expectations set and a path to achieve my goals.”