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Isaac Carter is the 2025-2026 Mayo Demonstration School Teacher of the Year!

Isaac joined Team Tulsa in 2022 and has been the special education teacher at Mayo for two years. We asked him a few questions to learn more about him and his time in Tulsa Public Schools.

What led you to a career in education?

Being the youngest of seven kids, I have always been surrounded by little nieces and nephews. I always loved the joy and chaos that they brought and always enjoyed getting to help out with them.

In college, I volunteered quite a bit in my church nursery, and I loved cultivating relationships with the kids and their families while doing so. During this time, I also had the opportunity to work with adults with special needs. One highlight was putting on a Christmas pageant together. Spending time with both groups was a nice respite from college studies – and brought me so much joy!

After college, I decided that I wanted to combine these twin passions by pursuing a career in special education. I’m so glad that I did!

What is your favorite thing about your work?

I love sparking the joy of learning in my students! We work hard, and we have fun at the same time! I love that I can make up a song about digraphs with my students at 8:30 in the morning, and sure, they might laugh at me for a half second for the goofiness and sheer randomness of it all, but then they’ll belt it right along with me! Relatedly, one of my favorite things about my work is the sound-dampening walls in my room.

There’s nothing quite like seeing my students’ hard work pay off in real time. Seeing the spark in a child’s eye when they themselves recognize they are making progress with their reading is so gratifying.

I fundamentally believe all children can learn – and that conviction informs how I teach. I love being a cheerleader for my students!

What is one thing you are passionate about outside of teaching?

I love baking! I’ve never met a pastry I didn’t enjoy making (or consuming!) I also really love reading, rollerblading, and going to the park with my family.

Is there anything else you would like to share?

Mayo is the place to be! My coworkers show up day in and day out and give 110% for our students. Cultivating the next generation of thinkers and leaders is arguably the most important job there is, and I feel so lucky that I get to do this work with them.