Takeru “TK” Nagayoshi is the 2020 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year. He teaches AP English in New Bedford, MA. As a son of Japanese immigrants and a gay person of color, Takeru leverages his identities to fight for equity. Outside the classroom, he has written op-eds on culturally responsive teaching, recruits educators of color as one of the senior fellows at the MA Department of Education, and serves an educator diversity task force. He has also participated in fellowships, such as those offered by Teach Plus and the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and lends his voice to multiple panels, committees, and advisory boards throughout the year. Takeru has received recognitions such as the Sue Lehmann Excellence in Teacher Leadership Award (2019), Boston University Young Alumni Award (2019), and Sontag Prize in Urban Education (2018). He graduated magna cum laude from Brown University with an honors B.A. in international relations and from Boston University an M.Ed in Curriculum and Teaching