Out of 600 nominations, 3 metro-east teachers are Golden Apple Award finalists

Out of nearly 600 nominees, three metro-east teachers are finalists for the Illinois Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching.

East St. Louis’ Annette Harris Officer Elementary fourth grade teacher Meonshai Houston, Mascoutah Elementary fifth grade teacher Joshua Veath and Ashley Whittington, who teaches English to middle and high school students at the Center for Educational Opportunities in Troy, are among 30 finalists for the competitive award.

The Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching recognize those who positively affect students’ growth, learning and lives, as well as their school communities overall, a press release said. Ten of the recently announced finalists will receive the award later this spring.

“There are great teachers across the state who often work in anonymity,” Golden Apple President Alan Mather said. “Teachers should be honored, should be seen and should be awarded when doing great things.”

Mather explained that once someone is nominated for the award, they are encouraged to formally apply. The process has multiple components, including essays, submitting a video of themselves teaching a short lesson and obtaining recommendations from administrators, parents and colleagues, the local finalists said.

From there, Golden Apple narrows the applicants to 60 and then to 30 finalists. To choose the 10 winners, Golden Apple soon will visit finalists’ schools to observe their teaching and meet with their colleagues, parents, administrators and current and former students, Mather said.

Each award recipient will receive a $5,000 cash award, become a fellow of the Golden Apple Academy of Educators — where they will work with aspiring and early-career teachers — and earn a sabbatical that includes free Northwestern University classes of their choice and a seminar class complete with an education-related project, Mather said.

Meet the three Metro East finalists:

Meonshai Houston

East St. Louis’ Officer Elementary School

Houston previously taught in Missouri but said she always wanted to return to teach in her hometown of East St. Louis. In 2017, she achieved that goal when she became a fourth-grade English language arts and social studies teacher at Officer, where she has taught ever since.

Teaching wasn’t always on Houston’s radar, she said. A few years into college, her father suggested she would make a good teacher.

He was right, her award nomination shows.

“Teaching is absolutely a blessing for me,” Houston said. “I feel like it’s really my calling. Once you’re my student, you’re always my student.”

Houston received her undergraduate degree in elementary education from Saint Louis University and her master’s in reading from Webster University. She said she hopes to become a reading specialist at Officer in the future.

Houston also received an Illinois State Board of Education 2026 Those Who Excel Award of Special Recognition. Individuals who receive the award are recognized by their school community “for the skills, passions and talents they bring to their school community,” the ISBE website states.

Houston also received an Illinois State Board of Education 2026 Those Who Excel Award of Special Recognition. Individuals who receive this award are recognized by their school community “for the skills, passions and talents they bring to their school community,” ISBE’s website states.

“I’ve always felt that I work hard and can work harder for my kids — I guess that’s just my mentality,” Houston said. “I’m in awe to get those two nominations and to get them in the same year … it’s like, ‘Wow, look at God.’”

Joshua Veath

Mascoutah Elementary School

Veath teaches fifth-grade math, science and social studies at Mascoutah Elementary. He is now in his 17th year at the school.

“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” Veath said.

Teaching fifth grade in Mascoutah was Veath’s first teaching job after graduating from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 2009.

Veath doesn’t take summers away from education. When he student-taught in Shiloh, he was introduced to the district’s Creative Learning Program. To this day, the program is an integral part of his summers. He said he especially enjoys the opportunity to work with a broad age range of children, from preschool through sixth grade.

“I’d be too bored if I had off the entire summer,” Veath laughed.

Veath said he always loved working with children, so the decision to pursue a career in education was a natural one. When he was growing up, school didn’t come easy to Veath, he said. Ultimately, though, he said he thinks this helps him relate to students, making him a better teacher.

Mascoutah Elementary Principal Michelle Cooley and Assistant Principals Sandra Litteken and Megan Mattmiller nominated Veath for the Golden Apple Excellence in Teaching award.

“I think that was the first honor – that all three of them thought of me,” Veath said. “Words can’t express my gratitude. There are so many amazing educators in Mascoutah alone; anyone could have got it.”

Ashley Whittington

Center for Educational Opportunities

Whittington’s mother, Tammy Frey, was a physical education and health teacher for 30 years in the Triad school district. To this day, Whittington said people still come up to her and talk about the impact Frey made in their lives.

“Watching her want to make a difference with students is a big part of why I am the way I am,” Whittington said.

She said she was “speechless” when she found out she had been nominated for the award.

Whittington first taught at Fulton Junior High in O’Fallon and then taught eighth grade in Aviston. Eventually, Whittington felt pulled to do something different, she said, so she started teaching middle and high school English at the Center for Educational Opportunities in Troy, her hometown, in August 2024.

The Center for Educational Opportunities is one of Madison County’s alternative education programs. Whittington explained the CEO serves students who may struggle in more traditional school environments because of behavior, attendance problems or a wide variety of other reasons. Whittington recently completed her specialist degree in educational administration from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from McKendree University, a master’s degree in differentiated instruction from Concordia University, and middle school endorsements in language arts and social studies.

Whittington started the Sunshine Squad at Aviston Elementary to spread cheer throughout the school. Sometimes that meant loading a cart with goodies, raising money for an inclusive playground swing or simply passing out seasonal treats. She said she is proud the Sunshine Squad is still thriving today.

Her version of the Sunshine Squad at CEO is “Feel Good Fridays.” Her middle school students take on small projects like sending teachers their favorite candy bars or valentines, and each Friday her high school students send positive notes to teachers and classmates.

“They realize how making someone feel good makes them feel good too,” Whittington said. “I’m all about building relationships and morale.”