Last January, Westwood Elementary School teacher Holly Logan received the surprise of a lifetime during an impromptu assembly in the gym at her Manchester school.¶
Logan says she was shocked to hear her name called out as the winner of the prestigious Milken Educator Award and kept asking herself, “Did that really happen?”¶
“I was very surprised because there are so many amazing educators that work at Westwood Elementary,” Logan said. “So, to know that I was recognized, that just meant a lot to me.”¶
The Milken Award is often called the “Oscars of teaching,” and winners take home a $25,000 prize.¶
Logan was officially recognized, along with awardees from across the country, during June’s Milken Educator Awards Forum, where the award’s founder, Lowell Milken, hosted the 2025 awardees.¶
Compassion in the Classroom
Logan graduated from Tennessee Tech University, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in foreign languages with a concentration in Spanish in 2013. Logan first began her career as a high school Spanish teacher for five years before earning her Master's in curriculum, instruction, and educational leadership with a concentration in English as a second language from Middle Tennessee State University in 2018.¶
She has been teaching for over 12 years, including six at Westwood Elementary School. She currently teaches ESL (English as a second language) to kindergarten through 5th grade and is also the lead ESL teacher for Manchester City Schools.¶
Logan said she first developed her love for Spanish throughout high school and while studying abroad. She said developing a passion for helping people with languages is what drives her as an ESL teacher.¶
“It was almost like a calling,” Logan said. “Just seeing people struggle and struggling to communicate would fall heavy on my heart.”¶
Building Relationships
Logan said she strives to build relationships with her students to make sure they have some sort of comfort and de-stress when they come into her classroom.¶
“[Students] are constantly navigating sometimes three or more languages,” Logan said. “But these kids are so intelligent; it's just that they have to navigate through that language barrier.”¶
In the classroom, Logan makes efforts to incorporate materials that her students can still learn from despite possible language barriers. Whether through videos or other visuals, Logan is “constantly looking for things that will help them to be successful.”¶
Even now, Logan said she continues to take Spanish classes to keep the empathy and compassion for what it’s like to learn a language.¶
“I want to always constantly remind myself of what they feel like,” Logan said.¶
Heading into the next school year, Logan said she often has the same students, but she wants to continue monitoring their progress. Seeing her students grow and successfully exit the program is one of the most rewarding things as a teacher, she said.¶
As of last year, Manchester City Schools outperformed the state’s rate for English language proficiency growth among K-12 students, with the city’s rate at 52.3 percent and the state’s at 42.3 percent. Logan says 41 students were able to exit the district’s ESL program this past year.¶
"It's seeing them come in kindergarten and being very limited in their ability to speak English, and then before they leave elementary, they've already exited the program,” Logan said. “You would not know that that was ever an issue for them.”¶
Leading as a Milken Educator
The Milken Educator Award also provides lifetime membership to the national Milken Educator Network, where educators can gain mentorship, professional development opportunities, and advisory access to over 3,000 veteran Milken Educators. Logan said that, moving forward, she also wants to stay in touch within the network, making sure to stay a "continuous learner”.¶
Logan is a member of the Milken Friends Forever cohort, which meets monthly and pairs a new recipient with a veteran Milken Educator mentor, encouraging collaboration to develop solutions to crucial educational needs nationwide.¶
“I always want to keep challenging myself to move on, progress, and to keep learning just like my students,” Logan said.¶
