Wes Blythe, a graduate student in the Program in Audiology and Communication Sciences at WashU Medicine , has been named a 2026 Missouri Teacher Leader of Tomorrow by the Missouri Milken Educators, an initiative of the Milken Family Foundation. Fifteen teachers across the state were selected this year for the award, which was created in 2022 by the Missouri chapter of Milken Educators and is given in collaboration with the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Each awardee will receive a year of coaching and one-on-one mentorship from a Missouri Milken Educator — a teacher who has been nationally recognized by the Foundation for outstanding achievement in the classroom — along with access to the full network of Missouri Milken Educators, a rich networking resource. The recipients were selected from a pool of nominees who will earn their undergraduate or graduate degree in education and complete student teaching in a Missouri school district in the 2025-2026 school year.
Blythe will graduate from WashU Medicine in May 2026 with a Master of Science in Deaf Education (MSDE), qualifying him to work with infants and children through age 21 who are deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH). He began the program in August 2024 after completing his bachelor’s degree in communication sciences and disorders at Indiana State University and subsequently working as a paraprofessional in Indiana.
As an aspiring teacher of the D/HH population, Blythe has demonstrated outstanding leadership, a dedication to student success, and a deep commitment to the profession, his nominator noted. From the first day of his graduate training, he has stood out as a leader in his cohort. He excels in the coursework and is able to apply that knowledge in the classroom to help students who are D/HH develop spoken language, listening skills and literacy. He goes above and beyond the degree requirements, seeking out additional learning experiences inside and outside the program.
The cooperating teachers Blythe has worked with in his three student teaching rotations have all lauded his passion for teaching and collaborative work style.
Angela Aromando, Blythe’s cooperating teacher at Parkway North High School, said, “Wes is deserving of this award because he meets students at their level. He challenges them and is very good at scaffolding to move them forward. He takes feedback and implements suggestions immediately. He is always willing to try new things and is always eager to be involved.”
The 2026 Missouri Teacher Leaders of Tomorrow honorees were selected because they stand out as examples of what’s right in the education profession, according to Meghan Menchella, a Milken Educator and representative of the Missouri chapter. New teachers will be named every year to celebrate the future of the profession. “The Missouri Milken Educators are thrilled to welcome quality teachers into the profession we love. We expect Wes to have a positive impact on the lives of students for many years to come,” says Menchella.
Casey Reimer, PhD, director of WashU Medicine’s MSDE program, nominated Blythe for the award after recognizing his excellence as a graduate student and student teacher. “Wes is a calming presence with his students. He has an unbelievable ability to address their needs while always keeping the objectives of the lessons in mind,” she says. “Students will want to have Wes for a teacher because of the welcoming culture he creates in his classroom and his genuine care for each individual student. Administrators will love having Wes as a teacher because he values feedback and being a member of the team. He consistently goes the extra mile for his students, their families, and his school community. The field of deaf education is fortunate to have a dedicated professional like Wes.”
WashU Medicine’s MSDE program has been training teachers of the deaf for more than 100 years. As one of the oldest and most prestigious programs of its kind, it stands out for its dedication to supporting children who are D/HH and their families. The MSDE program welcomes students from a variety of backgrounds who are passionate about learning to teach children who are D/HH to talk, listen, and read. Located in the School of Medicine, the program offers opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration with other WashU students who focus on working with children with disabilities. Students in the program gain hands-on experience from day one working with children who are D/HH and learn from experts in the field of deaf education throughout the entirety of the degree. MSDE students receive substantial scholarship support through grant funding from the U.S. Department of Education.
