Six Apples Awarded on Golden Apple Day 2026

Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, was our re-scheduled, early Golden Apple Day to award teachers the 2026 Golden Apple teacher award. Several staff, board, Teacher Academy and community members traveled approximately 63 miles throughout the county to surprise some extraordinary teachers in their classrooms. Here are this year’s recipients: Hayley Gotzsche, a music teacher at Willowbrook Middle School; Kelsey Zammuto, a science teacher at Hononegah High School; Shawna Sterling, a science teacher at Harlem Middle School; Katie Volk, an English teacher at Rockford Christian; Chelsea Spinello-Johnson, librarian at Marshall Middle School; and Bryce Thomas, a Global Studies and African-American History teacher at Guilford High School. Congratulations to everyone and thank you to all who participated in this year’s selection process! #goldenappleofrockford #goldenappleawards2026