Armleder’s Upper Elementary Science and STEAM Teacher Anna McKittrick has won Design LAB’s 2025 Educator of the Year.  

“There are over 2,500 students from over 100 classrooms who participate in Design LAB each year,” says McKittrick. “I was very surprised and honored when I found out that I was being given the award for Educator of the Year.” 

A 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Cincinnati, OH, Design LAB promotes appreciation of architecture and the built environment through programming, tours, and special events. Every year, its signature K–8, in-school educational program presents a new real-world architectural problem that students must solve. Local professionals volunteer to work with every class, guiding students through the entire process from ideation to the creation of a 3D model that showcases their solution.  

The program, says McKittrick, often ignites lifelong passions for STEM-related fields.  

“Some students learn through the process that this kind of work is what they want to do in the future,” she says. “We have had students who have participated in Design LAB who have gone on to become engineers, architects, electricians, or other careers related to structural design and creation.” 

Armleder has implemented Design LAB’s program for years, first introduced to the campus by Principal Cammie Montgomery when she was teaching fourth grade. Today, around 30 students from Grades 3–6 participate each year.  

“Design LAB is such a wonderful program,” McKittrick says. “One of the best parts of the program is the volunteers. We have had many volunteers over the years and currently have some of the best. Abby Sansom and Thom Anderson from CMTA volunteer and work with the third-grade class, and Michelle Mahoney from Al. Neyer has been volunteering with our Upper E class for three years now. Without the volunteers, Design LAB would just be another project. The volunteers help the students see the possibilities for the future and see themselves in building careers.” 

Winning Educator of the Year is a well-deserved honor that captures McKittrick’s undeniable passion for helping all students realize—and believe in—their potential.  

“There are so many statistics about ‘science loss’ where students of color and female students lose interest and engagement in STEM fields as they get older,” she says. “I want all my students to feel like they are allowed to be scientists and that their curiosity is valid.”