• Winner would bring Bill Nye for a science assembly

Two teachers with Lincoln County School District #2 are vying for America’s Favorite Teacher through americasfavteacher.org. Dane Hepworth, who teaches science at Star Valley High School, and Joseph Semadeni, who teaches fifth grade at Osmond Elementary School, are in the running.

The Grand Prize winner will receive a trip to Hawai’i and $25,000 to contribute to whatever project, personal or civic, that the teacher chooses.

In addition, the winning teacher’s school of choice will receive host Bill Nye, The Science Guy, in a school assembly, receive $1,000 towards a “Library Refresh” and a pallet of Hammermill Tidal paper.

Competitors have been receiving votes for the past month and have already completed two rounds of voting. The current elimination round concludes April 23, and determines the top two finalists who will move on to the Wildcard Round which concludes April 26. The winner of the Wildcard Round moves on to the Quarterfinals and will complete two additional rounds through June 5 when the Grand Prize winning teacher will be announced.

When asked what he would do with the $25,000 grand prize, Hepworth said he would put some toward his family’s medical bills, which are significant, since his son is in remission from a battle with cancer only a few short years ago.

He also hopes to create a program that would provide science experiences for local students. “I would love to bring some of these things to the valley and get some opportunities for some fun science camps that we can provide here in the valley – even bring Bill Nye!”

Semadeni would reinvest his winnings in science projects for his classroom. He feels that he has lots of room for improvement as a teacher but loves his work. “My goal is to not only help students improve their reading, writing, and math skills, but also to encourage them to develop a passion for history and science. Teaching is not work for me. I enjoy it very much.”

Voters can click on the links below, which will take them through Facebook to cast their vote. They can cast one free vote each day for as many teachers as they choose. They can also purchase votes each day for as many teachers as they choose.
https://americasfavteacher.org/2026/dane-hepworth
https://americasfavteacher.org/2026/joseph-semadeni

Hepworth encourages people to vote. “Why not? Somone’s got to win!”