In a classroom in High Springs sits Barbara Brock, 57, a middle school science teacher. There, she helps students create videos on the different Apollo missions, make posters with colored pencils on the rock cycles and addresses raised hands and questions about assignments.
She recently won the Alachua County Public Schools' 2026 Teacher of the Year award and will now go on to represent the district in the Florida Teacher of the Year program.
“I had goosebumps winning this award,” she said.
Brock was among 40 teacher nominees who were honored at the recent Robert W. Hughes Teacher of the Year celebration. She said the award means so much to her because she was nominated by her peers. She felt a lot of pride in winning the award and a greater appreciation for the people around her.
Brock said she didn’t always want to be a teacher. Originally, she wanted to be an author because of her love of writing. But after working for the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps and opening her own business, she found herself in the classroom.
Brock said teaching means “setting the stage for future generations.” She stressed the importance of preparing students to face the world around them.
“They’ll take care of me one day,” she said.
Even after 21 years, Brock still said her favorite, and simultaneously most challenging, part about teaching is the same thing: the unknown.
“I have the same plan all day in five different classes, and every single class goes in a different direction,” she said. Brock said it keeps her intellectually stimulated and lets her learn more. She said it was her favorite part of science.
“There’s so much going on, it’s always new,” she said.
Brock said a good teacher is made up of three things: a good sense of humor, content knowledge and patience. She said she wants to have a positive impact on students. And she does. At least, Principal Jenny Roberson thinks so.
“She gets her kids just really excited about science, which is hard to do sometimes with eighth graders,” Roberson said. She said while Brock was surprised she won the award, she was not.
“She is a very humble educator,” Roberson said.
She said Brock’s use of hands-on activities gets her kids ready to learn. And Brock works hard to create that environment. She has secured more than $19,000 in grant funding to prove it.
“She is just always wanting to take that next step,” Roberson said. She said a recent field trip to NASA, funded by the grants Brock has secured, is a testament to her love for teaching and desire to get her kids real-world experience.
She said what makes Brock stand out is her passion for teaching.
“If you’ve ever seen her teach, she’s just really into it,” Roberson said.
And Roberson isn’t the only person to acknowledge Brock. Parent Jenny Highlander also appreciates Brock’s teaching strategy.
“I feel like Ms. Brock really does a good job making it exciting to go to class, exciting to learn,” Highlander said.
Her two sons, Colton, 16, and Teague, 14, had class with Brock. Highlander said Brock helps students, even in the eighth grade, to start thinking about what they want to do when they get older through her teaching.
She said her sons feel that Brock uses real-world examples to help deliver content, not just lectures. She said her sons feel that Brock’s teaching style and quirky personality help her stand out from other teachers.
“I think that when a teacher makes school enjoyable, I think it sets them up to, you know, I guess, maybe see school in a different way,” she said.
Highlander said teachers have a huge impact on a child’s development. She still remembers the teachers she had growing up who helped steer her path and made her believe in herself.
“I think I see that with Ms. Brock and with other teachers that the boys have had along the way,” she said.
Highlander said she feels fortunate her kids went to High Springs Community School and were able to have a teacher like Brock.
Brock said her biggest piece of advice to new teachers is not to be too hard on themselves. She said mistakes are meant to be learned from and then moved on from.
Director of ACPS Jackie Johnson said Brock’s win is a good reflection of the county.
“She is a wonderful representative for all the outstanding teachers we have here in Alachua County Public Schools,” she said.
She agrees with Roberson’s and Highlander’s assessment of Brock’s teaching.
“Ms. Brock has an amazing gift for sparking her students' interest in science and a lifelong love of learning,” Johnson said.
If she won, Brock would be the first teacher from Alachua County to win the Florida Teacher of the Year award.
On winning the Florida award, Brock said she would feel like she was on “Cloud 9.”