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Alaska’s Department of Education recognized that passion this spring. Leslie was one of five finalists for the 2021 Alaska Teacher of the Year award, among teachers from Anchorage, Utqiagvik, Fairbanks and Kotzebue. The Department of Education named Anchorage teacher Kelly Shrein Teacher of the Year last week.
Leslie, who lives in Seward, has a lot of fans on the Kenai Peninsula. Shona DeVolld is one of them. Both of her daughters have taken classes with Leslie.
“You really get a feeling that Kim makes every student feel like they are her favorite kid,” DeVolld said. “For a teacher to be able to do that over distance is absolutely remarkable.”