Bancroft Rosalie teacher receives 2025 Nebraska History Teacher of the Year award

James Hulstein, a teacher at Bancroft Rosalie Public Schools, has been named the 2025 Nebraska History Teacher of the Year. The award is sponsored by The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

This year, over 7,000 teachers across the United States were nominated for the History Teacher of the Year Award. Hulstein was selected as Nebraska's recipient from this large group of nominees.

The History Teacher of the Year Award recognizes outstanding K-12 educators in American history from each state, as well as from the District of Columbia, Department of Defense schools, and U.S. territories. The purpose of the award is to emphasize the importance of history education and honor those who excel in teaching it.

According to the announcement, "As a classroom educator, Hulstein is driven by a desire to instill in his students historical thinking skills like inquiry, research, multiple perspectives, and synthesis to create and tell the stories they have found." The statement continues: "Hulstein requires each of his students to dive deeper into the nation’s past to find understanding and knowledge through accurate and reliable sources from differing perspectives, to corroborate and evaluate a source. Mr. Hulstein believes that knowing and understanding one’s own history is critical."