Coronavirus has taken the lives of hundreds of thousands—young and old, men and women, people of all backgrounds.
Among the educators we’ve lost was a teacher who’d taught her students online the day before she died. Another was a school climate counselor at his alma mater who supported students struggling with behavior. Some of them had retired, but are still vividly remembered for their deep impact on students’ lives.
As of Jan. 21, 2022, at least 1,262 active and retired K-12 educators and personnel have died of COVID-19. Of those, 429 were active teachers.
In this memorial, we remember some of the dedicated educators lost to their communities and to the field.
Do you know someone who is not already in this memorial? Please tell us about them.
In addition to our own reporting and reader submissions, here are some other sources Education Week has used to identify and/or confirm names to include in this gallery: Amalgamated Transit Union memorial, American Federation of Teachers memorial, Dignitymemorial.com, Google alerts and search of local media reports, Legacy.com, Lexis-Nexis, @losttocovid Twitter account, the United Federation of Teachers memorial, and the UTLA memorial.
Click the tabs to see the educators we’ve lost to the coronavirus in past years. Please allow time for the galleries to fully load.
Related Reading
- ‘Inspiring Me for the Rest of My Life': Students Pay Tribute to 33-Year-Old Teacher Lost to Coronavirus
- ‘There Was a Better Fate for Her': Remembering 18-Year-Old Who Died From Coronavirus
- The Inspiring Legacy of Flint’s First Black Superintendent, Dead From Coronavirus
- ‘Amazing Cook’ for Austin, Texas, Schools Dies From Coronavirus
- ‘Bright Star’ Principal, 36, Dies From Coronavirus
