Photos courtesy of Hoover City Schools
Bluff Park Elementary first grade teacher Katie Collins, left, and Spain Park High School biology teacher Kristin Bundren are among the "Sweet 16" finalists for 2025-26 Alabama Teacher of the Year.
Two teachers from Hoover City Schools this week were named to the “Sweet 16”” list of finalists for 2025-26 Alabama Teacher of the Year.
Bluff Park Elementary first grade teacher Katie Collins and Spain Park High School biology teacher Kristin Bundren are the two finalists from state Board of Education District 3. Read more about Collins and Bundren here.
A statewide committee now will narrow the list down to four finalists before the Alabama Teacher of the Year is named in May. The 16 finalists were selected from among 155 teachers statewide, with two coming from each state Board of Education district.
Here is the complete list of finalists this year:
District 1:
- Angela Kirby, Gulf Shores Middle School
- Kristin Madsen, Gulf Shores High School
District 2:
- Amy Garrett, Center for Advanced Academics and Accelerated Learning, Pike County
- Joshua Wine, Auburn Junior High School
District 3:
- Katie Collins, Bluff Park Elementary School, Hoover City Schools
- Kristin Bundren, Spain Park High School, Hoover City Schools
District 4:
- Katherine Thomas, Edgewood Elementary School, Homewood City Schools
- Aubrey Bennett, G.W. Carver High School, Birmingham City Schools
District 5:
- Lindsey Norris, Forest Avenue Elementary School, Montgomery County
- Roseann Byrd, Citronelle High School, Mobile County
District 6:
- Andrea Dade Horn, Locust Fork Elementary School, Blount County
- Heather Oden Pettit, Arab High School
District 7:
- Deidra Brewer, Highland Park and Webster elementary schools, Muscle Shoals City Schools
- Andrew Lee Mills, Florence Middle School
District 8:
- Catherine Megan Hockey, Rainbow Elementary School, Madison City Schools
- Amanda Gudmundsson, Athens High School
