SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) - ABC10, in partnership with SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union and Sacramento State’s College of Education, is proud to announce Lesley Washington of Katherine L. Albiani Middle School in Elk Grove as Teacher of the Month for January 2025. 

In place for 20-plus years, Teacher of the Month is one of ABC10’s signature community enrichment initiatives designed to highlight local teachers making a difference in the lives of their students and families.

After being interviewed recently by ABC10’s Mark S. Allen, a seven-time Emmy Award-winning member of the news team, an uplifting story about Washington will air multiple times throughout the month of January.

Washington has been teaching for more than 25 years and currently teaches 7th grade world history and 8th grade U.S. history at Katherine L. Albiani Middle School, which is part of the Elk Grove Unified School District. Even though she is the one being honored as an ABC10 Teacher of the Month, Washington is quick to recognize the thousands of amazing students who have walked into her classroom and touched her heart. 

When asked to share advice for the future teachers of America, Washington said (in part): “My advice to our future teachers would be to practice three rules: Practice patience with compassion, interact with intent, and communicate with purpose.”

As part of being recognized as Teacher of the Month, Washington will receive $1,000 from SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union plus will be eligible for the title of ABC10’s Esquire IMAX Teacher of the Year – with a $5,000 prize – which will be announced at a future date.

To nominate a local teacher in the greater Sacramento/Stockton/Modesto area for an upcoming Teacher of the Month, please visit abc10.com/teacherofthemonth. 

In addition, ABC10’s Teacher of the Month program was showcased during the 2023 Sacramento Business Journal’s Corporate Citizenship Awards in which the station received an award in the Corporate Champion for Education category.

To learn more about ABC10 and its mission, or to watch award-winning special reports and other exemplary news stories, please visit www.abc10.com or youtube.com/ABC10.

In addition, ABC10 can be live streamed via the ABC10+ app on Roku and Amazon Fire.