The Real Life Miss Frizzle, The Equation for Engagement, and Magical Learning: Three NEA-NH Members Finalists for 2026 NH Teacher of the Year

Every day a New Hampshire teacher makes a difference in the life of a child. Every year the New Hampshire Department of Education honors outstanding educators who make their communities, profession, and the world a better place.  

“These finalists represent the very best of New Hampshire’s dedication to education. Their passion, creativity, and commitment to their students inspire all of us, shaping not only strong learners but also the next generation of leaders,” said Joseph Daley, New Hampshire’s first gentleman and a member of the Teacher of the Year Selection Committee in an August press release. “It’s a privilege to honor their work and the example they set for our state.” 

All the three finalists for the 2026 NH Teacher of the Year are NEA-New Hampshire members: Justine Dube (Raymond); Jennifer McDonald (Gilford); and Megan Philbrook (Andover). Recently, we sat down to talk with them about their nomination, the experience, and their teaching philosophies.  

“It feels surprising for me. I’m very honored,” said Justine Dube, a first-grade teacher at Lamprey River Elementary School in Raymond. 

Dube was previously a semifinalist for the 2024 NH Teacher of the Year award when she was an educator in Manchester. Since then, she switched to teaching in the Raymond School District, where she’s now in her third year.  

“From the second I was nominated, it was important to everyone here—not just to my school community but the whole town,” Dube stated. “It has been overwhelming in such a good way.” 

As soon as she could talk, Dube knew she wanted to be a teacher. Her grandmother and aunt were teachers, and she had the opportunity as a young student to volunteer in her aunt’s first-grade classroom to read to kids and lead groups.  

“I never wanted to be anything else,” she said. 

The most important thing about her role as an educator, Dube said, is the connections she makes. While studying to become an educator, Dube became a mom. Her son came to school with her and the college and professors truly embraced her.  

She brings that experience to her teaching now: “I just realized how much it takes a village for people to be successful. Now when I’m teaching, I always think how would I want my son to be treated. Their parents aren’t here and essentially I’m acting in that role while I’m educating them.” 

From her free time to her wardrobe, Dube’s efforts to connect with her students are clear. She refers to herself as the Real Ms. Frizzle. She’s never repeated an outfit—and she shows off her outfits of the day (#OOTD) on Instagram @rl_missfrizzle (along with a closet tour).  

“I tap into student interests with my outfits,” Dube stated, explaining that she’s dressed up in outfits based on what her kids love, like Pusheen the Cat and Toy Story. “If a special day is coming up, I’ll try to dress and match. Like I wore a moon dress to the planetarium and pond pants when I brought frogs and turtles to school.” 

Dube also prioritizes family communication and attending outside activities like baseball games and school dances to bridge the school to family gap.  

“For me, it’s not just my job, it’s who I am. It’s how I like to live my life,” Dube stated. 

The second Dube became a teacher, she joined the union. Her coworkers told her it was a great support to have, and now she shares that knowledge with teachers she mentors.  

Dube expanded: “Not only are [the unions] there to support you, but the things they send and you can be involved in are excellent as well. I can’t speak enough about the importance of having building reps. When I needed a sounding board, I knew there would be nothing behind that but support.” 

“It’s humbling,” said Jennifer McDonald, a math teacher at Gilford High School. “Teachers look to support our students and families and the community and I’m not super comfortable calling attention to myself.” 

That said, McDonald added: “It’s incredibly validating to know that your work is seen and valued and appreciated, especially right before the school year. I still pinch myself.” 

McDonald was nominated by a student she had as a freshman, who came in around Christmas time last year to say he had a gift for her—the nomination. This student has had some challenges in his life, and McDonald says it felt good to know that the relationship they established in the classroom meant that much to him, especially as a math teacher. 

When it comes to her classroom, McDonald is deliberating about establishing a safe place for all learners, where they feel comfortable taking risks and thinking critically.  

“I do a lot of work with growth mindset, helping students recognize that making mistakes are a normal and necessary part of learning,” said McDonald. 

Mc Donald also prioritizes developing and maintaining healthy relationships with students. 

“Sometimes teachers hear that and think they don’t want to be a student’s friend. That’s not what it’s about. I’m not their friend, but I am a safe person for them and someone they feel comfortable coming to and talking to if they have a challenge in the classroom,” McDonald explained.  

McDonald believes that relationships + safety = engagement and growth.  

“When you have that equation in place, you can push students beyond what they’re capable of because it's an environment in which they feel comfortable taking risks,” she said. 

Now in her seventh year at Gilford High School, McDonald says she didn’t go to college to be a teacher right off the bat. She did well in school, but she grew up in a tumultuous home facing financial insecurity. While she was in the teacher prep program through the vocational program at her high school, college wasn’t an option for her because of financial reasons. 

“It was a fire within me that never burned out,” McDonald stated.  

When her youngest child was in third grade, and she was in her late thirties or early forties, she was able to begin preparing to become an educator. She attended community college for general education and then online schooling; throughout it all, McDonald works as a paraeducator at Laconia Middle School.  

As a para, McDonald made around $13,000. She didn’t feel she could give any of the money up to pay union dues. But that year, the union helped fight for a paraeducator contract that raised the salary and improved benefits.  

“At that point, I recognized how important the union was,” McDonald expressed. “That money was going to an organization that valued, protected, and fought for us." 

“It’s just the sweetest thing. It’s just so joyful. And it’s so confirming of our hard work as educators,” said Megan Philbrook, who teaches grades five to eight at Andover Elementary/Middle School. 

Philbrook is in her twelfth year of teaching, and she’s been in Andover since 2017. She says she already feels like a winner because she was nominated by two of her former eighth grade students.  

“I am not sure what possessed them to Google ‘NH Teacher Award’, but they got the ball rolling for me. It brings tears to my eyes. I am just so grateful for them,” Philbrook stated. “They’re eighth grade boys so they’re more about actions than words but I think one of them was quoted in the Concord Monitor and I think the quote was “Her love of teaching helps me love learning”.” 

In Andover, they do “looping” which means Philbrook teaches 5^th through 8^th grade with the same group of kids for four years before they go to high school. In that time, she says, so much trust is established, and she feels like a more effective teacher because she gets to know her students so well.  

Philbrook’s teaching mantra is “Making Learning Magical” and her philosophy centers around creating an active learning atmosphere, not passive, because she believes hands-on learning pushes the learning verb onto the child. 

“I believe that engagement should be the goal over classroom compliance. My methods are very much in high engagement. I want kids to be learning through play and having fun and looking forward to what they’re going to do every single day in social studies,” Philbrook said.  

She provided an example of what this looks like in practice. While learning about the stock market crash, students get to do a hands-on simulation. She is the “Bank of Philbrook”, and they get monopoly money and learn to buy and sell stocks. Inevitably, students buy so many stocks that they don’t have any cash left, and by the last round of trading, prices drop—and students freak out.  

When thinking about the origins of her teaching career, Philbrook looked back to eighth grade: “I remember helping my twin brother with his schoolwork after school and really liking how my mind would redesign some of our lessons throughout the school day so I could reteach the information to him.” 

She said once she became a public-school educator in Manchester (the largest local union in the state), it was just a natural progression to become a union member. Now at Andover, she’s at one of the smallest local unions in the state. Currently, she serves as the president of Andover EA.  

Philbrook hopes that whoever the winner is, other New Hampshire educators and union members cheer for them as they go on to the National Teacher of the Year program to compete against winners in other states and territories because New Hampshire has not had a winner since the 1970s. 

“I feel strongly and hopeful and maybe too optimistic...that it’s going to be a New Hampshire teacher,” Philbrook cheered.