They are loved by students, admired by peers and stick out as leaders and examples in the education community.

Related content District teachers of the year Teacher profiles: Salt Lake City District Granite District Davis District Nebo District Provo District Tooele District Story continues below Alpine District Jordan District Murray District Charter schools

Some make sacrifices to be in the profession, others go above and beyond in the classroom, and some have an unconditional love for students.

Everyone has a favorite teacher. And this year 25 teachers, selected from the ranks of about 22,000 educators statewide, were named Teacher of Year for their districts.

Those honorees are in the running to be chosen for 2006 Teacher of the Year for the state and will be honored at a Friday banquet.

But this year the award is historic.

The past few years the winner was awarded $1,000. But this year the top teacher named will receive $10,000, while the first and second runners-up will get $5,000 and $3,000 respectively.

Tina Morandy, teacher of the year coordinator at the State Office of Education, said the extra money comes from a one-time $25,000 chunk the Legislature set aside to help teacher morale.

"We are really excited to be able to get this extra money for our Utah teachers who really deserve it," Morandy said. "We really want to build the program up, and this definitely helps with that."

She said leaders are hoping lawmakers will continue to fund the awards in the future.

Aside from the money, the Teacher of the Year will receive a laptop computer from PC Laptops and a classroom sound system from Audio Enhancement. All three winners will also walk away with gift baskets from Great Harvest and O.C. Tanner.

Today the Desert Morning News recognizes a sampling of the district teachers of the year, their expertise and dedication to Utah students.