Mullen High science teacher is 2026 Nebraska Teacher of the Year

Sarah Hardin, a high school science teacher with Mullen Public Schools, is the 2026 Nebraska Teacher of the Year. Sept. 15, 2025. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

MULLEN, Neb. — Former banker Sarah Hardin took a nontraditional path to becoming a teacher in Mullen, beginning in 2007, where she has taught science, math, agriculture and physical education.

On Monday, the Nebraska Department of Education honored the Mullen High School science teacher as the 2026 Nebraska Teacher of the Year.

Hardin told reporters she was “shocked” when she was nominated, “shocked” when she was named one of four finalists and “even more surprised today,” when the Education Department surprised her in her Sandhills classroom with the honor.

“I know there’s some amazing educators, even in our building, and so I’m just really surprised that I’m even in this position right now,” Hardin said Monday.

Hardin’s husband was also in attendance as Nebraska Education Commissioner Brian Maher gifted Hardin a marble apple, a tradition symbolic of the annual honor. 

Maher praised Hardin’s hands-on learning and striving to make learning fun.

“She believes in you, and she has a strong belief in the students in Mullen and the students that she has the honor of teaching,” Maher said.

The other three finalists in addition to Hardin this year were Lori Pflaster of Sandoz Elementary in Lexington, Katie Czerwiec of Beveridge Middle School in Omaha and Keairra Watson of King Elementary in Omaha.

Hardin and her fellow finalists — Pflaster, Czerwiec and Watson — will be honored by the Nebraska State Board of Education at a December reception.

Teaching vision

Hardin is president of her local education association that represents local teachers and a volunteer EMT. A panel of Nebraska educators annually screens and selects a teacher each year to represent Nebraska on the national stage. The honoree participates in a yearlong commitment away from the classroom, representing the Cornhusker State from Washington, D.C. to Nebraska teaching colleges and also attending NASA Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama.

Hardin also will throw her name in the ring for the National Teacher of the Year honor this fall and will give four updates to the Nebraska State Board of Education in 2026. Board President Elizabeth Tegtmeier of North Platte, whose district includes Mullen, joined Monday’s celebration.

“I believe it is our job as educators to tap into our students’ passions and design lessons that make those subjects relevant and meaningful,” Hardin wrote in her application for the statewide role. “Science education should be active, fun and will empower students of all backgrounds to see themselves as thinkers, creators and problem solvers.”

A nontraditional path

It was about 19 years ago that the Mullen Public Schools superintendent knocked on the Hardin household door one Sunday and said, “Hey, we’re short a science teacher, and we can’t find anybody.” 

Hardin, who at the time was a banker, and her husband both have science degrees, and Hardin’s husband who had answered the door informed the superintendent of his wife’s degree.

Hardin said that while she never wanted to be a teacher, she had always liked working with kids and did several community-related projects with children in Mullen.

“I kind of took a leap,” Hardin reflected. She said she took a pay cut but “just decided I missed science, and I’m passionate about science.”

Hardin went through a transition to teaching program through the University of Nebraska at Kearney, a program she said Mullen has benefited from with multiple educators. While she didn’t have any teaching experience, she was handed the keys to her own classroom. 

Other Mullen educators uplifted Hardin, which she said contributed to her success. 

Igniting curiosity

On Monday, Hardin led a class of four seniors to review forms of energy they had previously learned about so they could soon create their own Rube Goldberg machines, a series of simple items that together form a complicated contraption, usually to finish a simple task.

In other Hardin-led lessons, students have dissected owl pellets or built cardboard boats and set them sailing in a nearby pond. She is also leading the development of a geothermal greenhouse for Mullen High to engage with real-world issues.

Hardin said she wants students and teachers to be excited about learning. She said learning must go beyond memorizing facts and formulas and instead spark curiosity, encourage hands-on exploration and connect with students’ experiences and interests.

“My role is to ignite that curiosity, guide discovery and make sure every student sees themselves as capable of deep understanding and innovation,” Hardin wrote in her application.

‘A good person’

The seniors in Hardin’s class Monday said their teacher is very nice and has accomplished her vision with fun projects. Of the four, all but one are taking a trio of courses with Hardin this fall.

“She’s very considerate, not just to the kids in the classroom,” said Sydnee Cheever.

“I see her as a good person,” added Tate Kvanvig.

Hardin is also involved in the STEM club with the local elementary school, which Hardin helped start about 10 years ago after noticing a decline in the amount of time that young students could spend on science and technology and wanting to introduce younger students to science sooner.

Mullen now has large enough classes to support about 50 children at those clubs, with the first meeting of the year hosting about 28. Some students skip youth sports practices to join.

“We’re pretty proud of the fact that they get excited to come do more schoolwork after school,” Hardin said.

Every March, the district also hosts a “STEM family night” to invite K-12 students and families to participate in STEM stations, which Hardin said has students asking year-round, “When is that family thing?”

‘Give her all our best’

Mike Kvanvig, the principal of Mullen High School, said he was really excited to learn Hardin had been selected as a finalist and knew she had a “great shot” for the statewide honor as an “outstanding” member of his staff.

“There’s quality all over the state, and it’s good representation for small schools like this to have somebody get in there,” Kvanvig said.

Mullen has about 500 residents. Mullen High had 45 students during the 2024-25 school year.

Kvanvig said he came to Mullen High about a year or two after Hardin and could tell right away “she just had that factor that made her stand out.” That includes keeping students interested through her lessons and setting high expectations. He added she is probably one of the strictest teachers in his building but earns student respect.

“Great management skills, always striving to get better every year, continuing to go to professional development and always looking for new things for the kids,” Kvanvig said.

Hardin doesn’t wait for issues to fester, he added. She speaks up immediately.

“If anybody ever had a shot at the National Teacher of the Year, I think it’s Sarah Hardin,” Kvanvig said. “We’re going to support her and give her all our best for that, and hopefully we’ll have Nebraska’s first National Teacher of the Year.”

‘Who you teach’

Hardin said among her goals as Nebraska’s representative is to draw public attention to the importance of teacher retention and highlight the importance of understanding community, in and out of the classroom.

“If you don’t know about your kids and try to talk to them about things that are happening, but also be involved in what’s happening in your school community and in the larger community, I think you’re kind of disconnected with them,” Hardin said.

“Even though I might be here a little later than I want to every day, I think that’s a really important piece to take part in to understand who you teach.”

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