Montezuma's Allison Pargeon named Regional Teacher of the Year

By J.O. Parker
 
       The Iowa Department of Education recently named nine teachers from across the state, including one from Montezuma, as the 2026 Iowa Regional Teachers of the Year.
        Among those named is Allison Pargeon, a 26-year veteran who engages students in upper-level math and computer science courses at Montezuma High School. She teaches algebra, calculus, statistics and computer science.
        Pargeon is the second Montezuma teacher in as many years to be named a Iowa Regional Teacher of the Year.
      In 2025, Kevin Gartman, a business teacher at Montezuma High School, was named a Iowa Regional Teacher of the Year finalist.
        When asked about the learning culture at Montezuma and having two teachers in two years be named a Regional Teacher of the Year, Pargeon said, “Montezuma really prioritizes academics and our administration encourages us to try different things in our classroom that allow our students to grow as individuals.”
      Other finalists joining Pargeon are Marissa Moore, Clear-Creek-Amana; Tony Onesto, Burlington; Kelly Myers, Murray; Gregory Barord, Des Moines; Jennifer Ries, Maquoketa; Dawn Rheingans, North Scott; Stephanie Pritts, Sheldon and Kristi Mentink, Harris-Lake Park in being named a Iowa Regional Teacher of the Year.
        “We are proud to recognize nine outstanding educators from all corners of the state in our second-ever Iowa Regional Teachers of the Year designation," said Iowa Department of Education Director McKenzie Snow. “Like their colleagues across Iowa, these exceptional teachers partner with families to provide all learners with what they need to meet high expectations and realize their incredible potential. The Department, alongside each school community and education region, thanks and congratulates Iowa’s 2026 Regional Teachers of the Year for their expertise, dedication and care, putting students at the center of all they do.”
       Pargeon is a 1992 graduate of Montezuma High School. She holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics education and applied computer science from William Penn University and a master’s degree in mathematics with a secondary teaching emphasis from the University of Northern Iowa.
      Pargeon also teaches college-level math and statistics and instructs pre-service teachers in algebra and geometry to prepare them to teach in K-8 classrooms. She is a former recipient of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching award and serves the district beyond the classroom as a grant writer, computer science career development liaison, National Honor Society sponsor and cheer coach. Pargeon believes that for students to be truly engaged, they must have fun and see how what they are learning is relevant to their lives.
      When asked to share highlights of her teaching career,  Pargeon said one of her greatest accomplishments is having a student(s) return and thank her for teaching them math and computer science because their careers have required all of those things.
       “I am very blessed,” she said.
    When asked what led her to become a teacher, Paregon credits former teachers at Montezuma, Ron Willrich, and the now late Dennis Wilson.
       “They just really put kids first and helped everyone be the best they can be,” she said of the two men.
When asked about becoming a teacher, Pargeon said, “I love getting to know so many different kids and just seeing them become adults that they were always meant to be.”
      Educators, administrators, students, families and other stakeholders submitted nominations for the Iowa Regional Teachers of the Year designation. In partnership with teachers and education leaders across Iowa, the nine regional teachers nominated represent a variety of schools, grade levels, subjects, endorsements, and pathways to the teaching profession, with expertise spanning English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Special Education, English Language Learners, World Languages, Fine Arts, Marine Biology and more.
Each of these outstanding teachers will now advance as a finalist for the 2026 Iowa Teacher of the Year award, to be announced later this month. 
     Established in 1958, the prestigious Teacher of the Year award honors an Iowa teacher who advances student learning through evidence-based instruction, empowers students with multiple pathways to postsecondary success, learns from and invests in fellow educators and serves students in partnership with families. 
      Last year, Melanie Bloom, an agriculture educator from Sioux Central Community School District and 2025 Prairie Lakes Regional Teacher of the Year, was named the 2025 Iowa Teacher of the Year. The Iowa Teacher of the Year serves as an ambassador for the Iowa Department of Education and a liaison for educators across the state.
     When not in the classroom, Pargeon enjoys spending time with her family and reading historical fiction novels, something she does a lot of.
      Pargeon is married to Daryl and the couple have three grown daughters. Their oldest, Aliya, is married to Bryan Kriegel and the couple has two sons with another on the way. Aliya works for Manatts and Bryan runs an agriculture spraying business.
      Their middle daughter, Mya, is married to Holden Jensen and the couple runs an agriculture spraying and spreading business.
     And their youngest daughter, Ava, a 2025 graduate of Montezuma, currently attends PCI Academy and is working to become an Esthetician.

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