Nashville public charter school teacher receives national recognition for outstanding work in the classroom

TreAnna Buchanan (Photo by KIPP Nashville Public Schools)

TreAnna Buchanan serves multiple roles at KIPP Antioch College Prep Elementary. She teaches fourth-grade humanities at the school while also mentoring colleagues as grade-level chair, content lead, and master teacher, and this month she added a new distinction.

KIPP Public Schools named Buchanan a recipient of the 2025 Harriet Ball Excellence in Teaching Award, given each year to ten K-12 teachers from KIPP schools around the country. This year Buchanan was selected from a pool of nearly 8,000 teachers across the national network of KIPP Public Schools.

“Harriet Ball was a fierce advocate for students, someone who believed in the power of great teaching to break barriers and change lives. To receive an award in her name and to be honored for doing just that, teaching with purpose and equity and relentless commitment, for me, this award represents years of pouring everything into my students,” said Buchanan.

She sat down with the Tennessee Firefly to talk about the honor and her experiences in the classroom. Buchanan said she initially planned to become a dentist but realized it wasn’t for her once she began college. So, she took inspiration from her mother, who had left her corporate job to begin babysitting to spend more time with TreAnna when she was young.

“A lot of those kids who came in, some of them didn't have that same love at home and I saw the drastic effect it made on them,” says Buchanan. “Not only the way that they learned because she would teach them pre-K things but also a lot of them had behavior problems at home but once they came with my mom, they really were a totally different kid and I really feel like the love that they felt from her was a big part of that.”

Buchanan says when she began searching for a teaching job, she wasn’t familiar with public charter schools like those operated by KIPP. These are free public schools operated by a non-profit organization under an independent contract or “charter” with a school district or the state. She learned about KIPP Antioch College Prep Elementary from a television news story and after looking into it, found that the school seemed to match her values.

“That they were diverse, and they knew how to meet the needs of their diverse students and staff, that the curriculum showcases books that were windows, mirrors, and doors for their students, actively fought to dismantle systemic racism within the educational system and provided a safe space that celebrated all the diverse cultures and our student population. I was nervous too, that's a big ask,” says Buchanan. “I went on their website, and I saw their commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, I saw their student numbers.”

Since joining KIPP Antioch College Prep Elementary, Buchanan’s work in the classroom has gotten her noticed. Under her instruction, 74 percent of students in her class were reading on grade level. By comparison, 2024 TCAP (Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program) data shows that 33 percent of Metro Nashville Public Schools students district-wide in grades 3-5 achieved proficiency in English Language Arts (ELA). Buchanan credits an instructional model focused on fluency and consistent structure that allows her to coach and address gaps in real time along with hard work for her students’ success.

“It was definitely a reflection of both my students’ hard work and the strength that I've developed in this instructional model. It’s simple but it's really powerful. I feel like the biggest impact by far was that fluency routine and the consistency within it and students actually spending time in text.”

She also says the support teachers get with coaching and in-depth assessment analysis at KIPP Antioch College Prep Elementary has been critical to creating positive outcomes in the classroom and preparing students for long-term success.

“We do things with intentionality and that's what sets us apart. Everything we do is grounded in data-driven instruction. We're constantly analyzing what students know and what they need next and adjusting our plans to make sure no one falls through the cracks,” said Buchanan. “We also put a strong focus on rigorous questioning. We're not just asking students to recall facts, we're pushing them to think critically, justify their answers, and connect ideas. Most importantly, the heavy lifting is on the students. They're reading, writing, thinking, and talking throughout the lesson.”

When it comes to advice for those considering a career in education, she says to make sure to maintain a positive work-life balance but also circles back to the important lesson she first learned from her mother.

“What I always tell people; you cannot do this work if you do not love kids. That makes all the difference. There are a lot of kids that come in here with different things in their life that you have no idea what they're dealing with and them coming in here and feeling love is like that first net of safety. That has to be met in the hierarchy of needs before anything else, before they can learn anything from you, before they can listen to you, they have to feel love.”