Rochester Teacher Announced as Semi-Finalist for ‘Prestigious’ Statewide Award

There's a big award that's given out every year in the education world that is considered quite prestigious. That award is the Minnesota Teacher of the Year award, and the 2026 semi-finalists have been announced. Among the semi-finalists is a Rochester, MN teacher!

Everyone say a big congratulations to Rajaa Ali from Gage Elementary!

ALSO READ: Cafe Steam Announces Opening Date for New Location

Gage Elementary Teacher in the Running for Minnesota Teacher of the Year

Rajaa Ali is a Multilingual Learner teacher at Gage and is in her seventh year. The initial pool of candidates for the Minnesota Teacher of the Year award was 128, so for her to be among the top 30 is impressive.

Rajaa had this to say about the nomination:

Being nominated is a great honor, and I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity. They wrote my name on a list with 29 other wonderful educators, but this nomination also belongs to all the educators who have taught me, worked with me, and continue to impact how I show up as an educator every day.

Rajaa is actually from the area. She went to Longfellow Elementary, then Friedell Middle, and finally Mayo High School. The fact that she's teaching in Rochester now is a real full-circle moment.

Superintendent Dr. Kent Pekel had this to say about Rajaa:

Rajaa embodies the very mission of Rochester Public Schools. As a student and graduate of our district who returned to serve our community, she models the knowledge, independence, and resilience we strive to instill in every student.

Get our free mobile app

What is a Multilingual Learner?

As a Multilingual Learner teacher, Rajaa takes into account the fact that the kids in her class may not only be learning English, but also another language as well.

As HMH writes about Multilingual Learning, it gives students the opportunity to "use all linguistic and cognitive resources, including the other languages they speak, to make sense of the academic content being delivered in the language they’re learning."

When the 2026 Minnesota Teacher of the Year Award is Handed Out

The 10 finalists for the Minnesota Teacher of the Year award will be announced in late March. The winner will be announced at a ceremony in May.