Rocio Jacoby, a Spanish teacher at Lincoln Elementary School in Oak Park, was named the 2026 Teacher of the Year by the Illinois Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ICTFL). Jacoby received the award on Oct. 8, at the organization’s Fall Conference Awards Ceremony and will go on to compete for a regional teacher of the year award through the Central States region later this year.
“I feel honored,” Jacoby told Wednesday Journal. “Honestly at the beginning it felt like a dream.”
Jacoby has taught Spanish at Lincoln School since 2008 and has worked for Oak Park Elementary School District 97 since 2003. She teaches Spanish to kindergarteners through fifth graders at Lincoln, 1111 S. Grove Ave., as part of D97’s World Language in Elementary Schools program which teaches Spanish to all elementary school students in D97.
Jacoby said she was particularly thrilled to receive the award because she teaches a foreign language to elementary school students.
“I feel like this happened to me because I have a mission to continue with the work that I am doing as an elementary school world language teacher,” Jacoby said. “Not just a world language teacher, but an elementary world language because I think the last elementary world language teacher was awarded this teacher of the year (award) was in 2014 if I’m not mistaken, so it’s been a while.”
Jacoby uses activities, what is technically known as the comprehensible input approach or acquisition driven instruction, to teach Spanish to her young students.
“I am teaching Spanish the same way they acquire their first language,” Jacoby said.
She makes learning Spanish fun and natural. She sings songs with her students, plays games with them, reads books to them, and tells them stories, all in Spanish, rather than explicitly trying to teach them grammar or vocabulary.
“Sometimes my students do not realize they are acquiring the language,” Jacoby said.
Jacoby teaches her students in 30 minute daily increments. She has kindergartners through second graders three times a week and 3rd, 4th and 5th graders twice a week.
Marianne Rehfield, Lincoln’s principal, said Rocío was deserving of the award.
“She continuously refines her practice to foster an engaging, culturally rich environment where every child thrives,” Rehfield said. “Her dedication to world language education, commitment to student proficiency and impactful leadership make her exceptionally deserving of this award.”
Jacoby was born, grew up and went to college in Peru so Spanish is her first language. She studied foreign languages in college and taught for a year in a private bilingual school in Peru. Then she got a scholarship to visit the United States and she ended up staying and earning a master’s degree from UIC and getting certified to teach. Before getting a job in D97 she worked as the Spanish literacy coordinator at Triton College.
Jacoby lives in Oak Park and teaches Spanish to adults in her spare time. She currently has 15 adult students, some of whom are the parents of her Lincoln students.
“I want every learner, regardless of age, socioeconomic background or career stage to discover that learning another language opens doors to new opportunities, perspectives and relationships,” Jacoby said in her personal statement to the organization. “In an increasingly interconnected world, developing cultural competence is no longer optional; it is essential.
D97 Enrichment Specialist receives fellowship
Arnetta Thompson, a Longfellow and Lincoln schools enrichment specialist, was awarded the Global Learning Fellowship from the NEA Foundation. Through the fellowship, Thompson will learn to integrate the UN’s Global Competencies into her teaching.
The yearlong fellowship includes monthly meetings and ends with a 10-day trip to Peru in July. Thompson is the only Illinois teacher who was chosen and one of just 50 recipients nationwide. She traveled to Washington D.C. in October for a kick-off and orientation. While in D.C. the fellowship recipients also visited Peru’s embassy.
“It was amazing to be among other passionate educators eager to integrate the Global Competencies into their teaching,” Thompson said in a story posted on the D97 web page.
