April Raguindin
First-Grade Teacher
April Raguindin, M.Ed., is a first-grade teacher, reading interventionist, and garden and kitchen educator at Douglas K. Fletcher Elementary in Bakersfield, California. A 2026 California Teacher of the Year with two decades of teaching experience, she’s built a space where curiosity, creativity, and community come first. She believes that relationships are the key to a successful classroom. Showing we care about each other, our community, and our environment is, to her, what education is all about.