Each day when Leon Smith walks into his classroom he knows he can make a difference in a student’s life.
“I know you. I believe in you.”
For Smith, those aren’t just words of encouragement. They’re a promise he makes to every student who walks into his classroom.
Smith, a social studies teacher at Haverford High School in Delaware County, has spent 25 years helping students discover not only history but confidence in themselves. He teaches Advanced Placement U.S. History, Advanced Placement African American Students and Honors Social Studies.
He was recently named 2026 National Teacher of the Year after earning Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year honors in 2025. The Pennsylvania Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS) member believes some of life’s most important lessons aren’t just found in textbooks. They are found in helping students build a community where they feel seen, valued and capable of reaching their fullest potential.
“As a teacher, you get to be that person a student will never forget,” Smith said. “If you make that connection and inspire them, they will learn you believe in them and they will then believe in themselves. It’s a tremendous power when you can look into the eyes of a student and say, ‘I know you, I know your abilities and I know you can do this.’ You can literally see their eyes light up. That is truly amazing to see.”
Before any lessons begin, Smith starts off with a classroom circle to get students to relax and relate to one another.
“This is where we get to talk about our goals for the week or it just gives us a moment to connect,” Smith said. “It could be something as simple as ‘What’s your favorite movie?’ ‘What’s your favorite artist?’ or even, ‘I didn’t know you liked that song, too.’”
While the classroom circle may seem simple, Smith said it plays an important role in learning and brain development. The practice is rooted in psychologist Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which suggests students learn best after they feel safe, connected and valued. Once those needs are met, students are better prepared to think critically, solve problems and engage in learning.
The lessons that shaped Smith’s teaching philosophy began long before he stepped into his own classroom.
Raised in a family of educators, Smith grew up with an appreciation and respect for education. But it wasn’t until the first grade when he experienced how one teacher could change the course of a child’s life.
“I was only 5 years old and we just moved to a new school,” Smith said. “I was starting first grade and I didn’t know anyone. The other students went to kindergarten together and I remember feeling so nervous. Ms. Mason made sure she stayed with me. I felt like she cared.”
But Ms. Mason didn’t just welcome Smith into her classroom. She made him feel truly seen.
“She showed she believed in her students,” Smith said. "You just felt like she saw you and you weren’t just a student in her class. She showed me she believed in me and that I was capable of more.”
Years later, another teacher helped Smith see what his own future could look like and how he could make a difference. When he was in high school, there were no black teachers at his school. But that changed when a student teacher, Mr. Haines, walked into his classroom.
If Ms. Mason helped Smith feel seen, Mr. Haines helped him see himself.
“I immediately felt joy and affirmation when he walked into my class,” Smith said. “When students have a mirror in someone in their class such as a teacher, it can provide a motivating factor for them to learn. Seeing Mr. Haines taught me I too could be a teacher and help make those vital connections and help inspire my students.”
That experience stayed with Smith throughout his career. As he grew as an educator, he also discovered the Center for Black Educator Development, a Philadelphia nonprofit dedicated to recruiting, developing and retaining black educators.
The organization and the supportive community at Haverford reinforced something he long believed, which is representation matters not only for students but for teachers as well.
“I was the only black teacher for the first 20 years of teaching,” Smith said. “Diversity is so important because our students need to know they have the ability to go to talk to someone they can relate to. In my role, I see a teacher as someone who students can go to where they can be seen, they know they are valued and that they matter. We need to be sure we reflect that back to our students, to all of our students. They need those important mentors.”
Smith has taken everything he’s learned inside and outside the classroom to continue to shape the educator he is today.
Rather than just being content to teach his lessons, Smith is always encouraging his students to tell him what interests them about history and the lessons he teaches so he could help them understand the subject deeper.
“That makes me a better teacher and a lifetime learner,” he said.
If there’s one quality Smith hopes students carry with them long after they leave his classroom, it’s empathy.
“No one can fully understand what someone is going through on a daily basis,” Smith said. “As humans we have challenges and we need to give people grace. I want my students to try to give each other grace.”
His sense of community and belonging isn’t just limited to his classroom. Smith also hopes to inspire the next generation of educators by encouraging young people to consider teaching.
“I’ve always felt like education was my mission,” Smith said. “I look back on my life and I feel like I’ve always had a calling for it.”