Susan B. Anthony teacher named Fresno Unified Kindergarten Teacher of the Year

Pahoua Xiong’s kindergarten classroom at Susan B. Anthony Elementary became the center of Fresno Unified’s Teacher Appreciation Week spotlight when ABC30 president and general manager Martin Ortiz surprised her with a DonorsChoose certificate and named her the district’s Kindergarten Teacher of the Year. Ortiz said Xiong was “going above and beyond” for her students and helping prepare them for successful futures.

The recognition points to a bigger local question: what does an exceptional kindergarten teacher do in Fresno Unified, where the district is trying to strengthen classroom readiness from the start? In those early years, teachers help children build basic literacy and numeracy, learn classroom routines, and develop the social and emotional confidence that shapes how they enter first grade. For families in Fresno, that work matters because it affects not just one classroom year but the foundation for later attendance, behavior and reading progress.

Fresno Unified has made that foundation part of a long-term target. The district says the percentage of first graders proficient in literacy based on iReady results is supposed to rise from 48% in June 2024 to 80% by June 2030. Against that backdrop, Xiong’s recognition was more than a feel-good moment. It put a face to the early-grade instruction Fresno Unified says will determine whether more children arrive in first grade ready to learn.

Xiong was also listed as a certificated elementary finalist on Fresno Unified’s 2026 Excellence in Education page, which includes finalists across elementary, middle and high school, along with English learner services and classified categories. Fresno Unified says the celebration draws more than 800 guests, and finalists are interviewed by panels of community members, retired employees and communications staff. The district had scheduled its 2026 Excellence in Education event for Feb. 19 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Fresno Convention Center.

The recognition fits into a wider countywide culture of educator honors. Fresno County Superintendent of Schools runs the annual Educator of the Year Awards for teachers, administrators and school employees. The Foundation @ FCOE said its 2025 Terrific Teacher campaign drew more than 300 nominations countywide, selected five winners and paired each surprise visit with a $200 classroom award. In Fresno County, teacher recognition is increasingly tied to classroom support, and Xiong’s honor at Susan B. Anthony Elementary showed that the smallest grades can carry the district’s biggest academic stakes.