By Lisa Williams, coordinator, KSDE early childhood team
As the school year gets underway, it’s the perfect time to celebrate the excellent work happening in early childhood home visiting profession — and to honor the dedication behind it. The Kansas Parents as Teachers Association (KPATA) has announced Beloit USD 273’s Ashley Eck has been selected as the 2025 Kansas Parents as Teachers Parent Educator of the Year.
This marks the first year KPATA has presented this statewide honor. Nominations were submitted by parents, colleagues, administrators, and community members. Each nomination celebrated the impactful work of Kansas home visiting parent educators — and Ashley’s dedication stood out.
The KPATA Membership and Nominating Committee used the following criteria to guide their selection:
- Impact on families
- Creativity
- Passion for and fidelity to the Parents as Teachers evidence-based home visiting model
- Collaboration with community partners
- Commitment to continued growth and support of colleagues
Hilary Koehn, executive director of the Kansas Parents as Teachers Association, said Ashley’s nomination highlighted several inspiring examples of her commitment, compassion, and creativity, including the following:
- Adaptability and commitment to meeting each family’s needs:
- Identified a potential hearing issue during a developmental screening and worked with the family to secure hearing aids.
- Met a family at a local resource center to ensure they received essential support during a challenging time.
- Dedication to quality and teamwork:
- Maintains detailed, accurate records in the family data system.
- Actively supports her program’s efforts to maintain its Blue Ribbon endorsement.
- Provides ongoing encouragement and collaboration to her colleagues.
- Deep community involvement:
- Serves as PTO president and a school crossing guard.
- Serves on the Board of Directors for the Summer Kids Café program.
- Creative community engagement:
- Organizes unique and engaging family events — including a group connection visit to the airport, which was featured nationally by the Parents as Teachers National Center.
- Long-standing service:
- Has served families in the Beloit community for nine years as a Parents as Teachers educator.
“On behalf of the Kansas State Department of Education, the state office for Kansas Parents as Teachers, we extend our heartfelt congratulations to Ashley and to the entire USD 273 district on this incredible and well-earned honor,” said Amanda Petersen, director of the KSDE early childhood team. “USD 273 has long demonstrated its commitment to early childhood education. This recognition of Ashley Eck as Parents as Teaches Parent Educator of the Year reflects the strength of their local program, dedicated team, and community’s support.”
Kansas Parents as Teachers programs and home visiting professionals make a remarkable difference in the lives of Kansas children and families. We’re proud to celebrate all the nominees for 2025 Kansas Parents as Teachers Parent Educator of the Year:
- Misty Bartel, USD 473 Harvey County PAT
- Savannah Bazil, USD 261 Haysville PAT
- Sharon Bell, Bright Futures PAT
- Martha Duran, USD 512 Shawnee Mission/Growing Futures
- Bethany Enyart, USD 233 Olathe PAT
- Alison Gonzales, USD 261 Haysville PAT
- Maricela Hernandez, USD 473 Harvey County PAT
- Terry Jensen, USD 229 Blue Valley PAT
- Lori Johnson, Greenbush PAT
- Valerie Kast, USD 512 Shawnee Mission/Growing Futures
- LaNell Keeler, USD 306 Southeast of Saline PAT
- Karen Kelley, USD 458 Basehor-Linwood
- Jana Kubik, USD 266 Maize PAT
- Kim Newell, USD 383 Manhattan Ogden PAT
- Jennifer Partridge, USD 453 Leavenworth/Ft Leavenworth PAT
- Julie Rains, USD 262 Valley Center PAT
- Laura Reyes, USD 405 Rice County PAT
- Suzanne Sawalich, USD 512 Shawnee Mission/Growing Futures
- Dana Schmidt, USD 489 Hays PAT
- Kim Schoenfeld, USD 261 Haysville PAT
- Becky Stobart, USD 261 Haysville PAT
- Sarah Whillock, USD 373 Harvey County PAT
- Dacia White, Greenbush PAT
- Meg Yenser, USD 261 Haysville PAT
