Forestview Middle School’s Jeanne Kilian Named 2024 Brainerd Teacher of the Year

Emotions were flowing in a Forestview Middle School classroom this past Thursday, as Brainerd Public Schools awarded 2024 Brainerd Teacher of the Year honors to special education teacher Jeanne Kilian.

Kilian has worked in education for 14 years and at Forestview for seven, teaching students with autism spectrum disorder. And while she’s felt the support from both her peers and students during her tenure there, the recognition and reception she witnessed was eye-opening.

“Sometimes you feel like you’re not seen,” said Kilian. “I have that support and I know it. But just seeing not just me on a personal level, but that they are seeing what I do every day in my classroom and with kids, it just means the world. It really means the world to me.”

Kilian wasn’t originally on the education track, but she said a past experience volunteering at Camp Friendship inspired her work in special education.