Chicago Bears Name Plainfield 5th Grade Teacher Classroom Legend

PLAINFIELD, IL — A fifth grade teacher at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School got a surprise during a virtual class assembly Jan. 24: Alyssa McLean learned she had been named a Chicago Bears Classroom Legend.

"I’m thinking, here is an assembly for the kids and I was very thrown off," McLean said in a statement.

Each month, the Classroom Legends program recognizes two teachers from around the Chicagoland area as a way to spotlight educators who go above and beyond their day-to-day job.

Fellow Jefferson Elementary teacher Bethany Short nominated McLean for the award, praising her in a nomination letter for her leadership, connection with students and technology savvy.

"She spends extra time with her students daily, so they are successful," Short wrote. "This includes office hours, outside of office hours, tutoring and special activities."

The title of a Classroom Legend comes with a $1,000 grant for McLean's classroom, which, according to a news release, she plans to use to buy books to keep fifth graders interested in reading.

She also received a personalized Chicago Bears jersey, a personalized Bears football, and two tickets to the Bears training camp. Several students and even Assistant Principal David Campbell have already offered to attend training camp with her.

"It’s a pretty neat thing," McLean said of the award.

McLean isn't the first District 202 teacher to earn the Chicago Bears' distinction. In 2020, Chicago Bears Chairman George McCaskey virtually visited Eagle Pointe Elementary School staff members to announce Scott Samek, a first grade teacher at the Plainfield School, as the team's newest Classroom Champion.