Richland One elementary language immersion program teacher named SCFLTA Teacher of the Year
March 26, 2026
Jing Zhang, a Mandarin Chinese kindergarten teacher in Richland One’s elementary language immersion magnet program at Carver-Lyon Elementary School, has been named the South Carolina Fellowship of Language Teachers and Advocates’ (SCFLTA) 2026 Teacher of the Year.
The announcement was made during the Southern Conference on Language Teaching in Raleigh, North Carolina March 21.
SCFLTA provides educators with information regarding and related to foreign language instruction, including professional development, advocacy, conferences and workshops.
Zhang has been teaching at Carver-Lyon for ten years and has played an instrumental role in the development of the elementary language immersion magnet program.
“I feel really happy to be recognized. Carver-Lyon and Richland One have really been supporting me as a teacher. When I came, the program had just started and we had working on getting to all of the different grade levels,” said Zhang.
To learn more about Richland One’s elementary language immersion program, visit www.RichlandOne.org/choice. Applications for magnet choice programs with spots still available for the 2026-2027 school year are due March 31.
