Best Should Teach
Join us on Thursday, March 5th, 2026 for the Annual Best Should Teach Ceremony
6:00-9:00 PM MT @ Chancellor's Hall (4th floor of CASE)
The Best Should Teach Initiative strives to acknowledge excellence in teaching and academic leadership. The initiative is managed by the Center for Teaching & Learning in coordination with the School of Education, and the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder. Lindley and Marguerite Stiles established the initiative in 1996 to promulgate the message that “The Best Should Teach.”
A Best Should Teach sculpture designed by John Haertling, which represents the flame of enlightenment, is installed at the School of Education on the University of Colorado Boulder campus as a visual reminder of the initiative and of the importance of teaching.
The Best Should Teach Initiative celebrates excellence in teaching at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels. It supports the preparation of college and university faculty, as well as public school teachers, in their disciplinary fields. Best Should Teach Gold and Silver Awards are presented at the event each year. The Best Should Teach event and awards are co-funded by the Ira and Ineva Baldwin Fund in the CU Foundation and Brian Good's private Best Should Teach Fund, with additional support from the Center for Teaching & Learning, the School of Education, and the College of Arts and Sciences.
Schedule
6:00-6:40 pm - Welcome and Keynote
6:40-7:10 pm - Presentation of Gold and Silver BST Awards
7:20-9:00 pm - Post-event Reception (food provided)
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Mollie Blackburn
In 2026, we welcome Dr. Mollie Blackburn, a Professor in the Department of Teaching and Learning within the College of Education and Human Ecology. Read more about Dr. Blackburn’s work here.
(For)Giving in Moving Across Differences
Based on a teacher research project conducted in an LGBTQ+-themed literature course in a queer friendly high school, this talk explores how students and teacher moved across differences by troubling the notion of forgiveness and embracing the act of giving. The goal of this movement was to share ethical encounters, where we were, at least sometimes, open, vulnerable, responsible, and responsive.