Let’s be honest — the 2020-21 school year has presented tests like none before.

Not the kind of tests that teachers routinely give to their students, but the once-in-a-lifetime challenges presented to teachers and their students by the COVID-19 pandemic.

With schools across the state relegated to distance learning for at least the first five months of the year, Oregon’s teachers have been asked to step up like never before. They’ve been called upon to re-invent learning, to connect with students and their families, and to keep the instructional setting positive when so many are struggling with the restrictions associated with the pandemic.

In response, Pamplin Media Group has stepped forward to honor some of our state’s best educators with its inaugural Amazing Educators special section. In this section — which represents 20 of PMG’s newspapers — our writers and photographers team up to recognize 25 of our state’s best educators, ranging from kindergarten and first-grade instructors all the way through high school, in public schools, private schools and charter schools alike.