Brian Esselman, a three-time graduate of the University of Missouri–St. Louis, teaches history at Affton High School, including an advanced college credit course. Last month, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History named Esselman the 2025 Missouri History Teacher of the Year. (Photo courtesy of Brian Esselman)

Each year, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History seeks out the finest history teachers in the nation to acknowledge the important work they do.

Since 2004, the organization has recognized more than 1,000 elementary, middle and high school educators in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories with its prestigious History Teacher of the Year Award. Earlier this month, Brian Esselman, a social studies teacher at Affton High School and three-time graduate of the University of Missouri–St. Louis, joined their ranks as the 2025 Missouri History Teacher of the Year.

Lisa Lillie, the coordinator of Saint Louis University’s 1818 Advanced College Credit Program, nominated Esselman. Lillie’s nomination underscored Esselman’s student-centered approach and his work with the 1818 dual-credit program at Affton High School.

“It’s a pretty humbling thing,” Esselman said. “I feel like I work at a school where the teachers around me work very hard with the students to challenge them and to get them to think critically, and I simply try to do my part in the history classroom. I teach world history and U.S. history, and I really believe that it’s a team effort. I was just honored to be recognized as part of that team effort.”

The annual awards honor teachers who demonstrate creativity and passion in the classroom and effective use of primary sources to engage students in American history. Winners are selected by committees of educators, historians and past winners. Each state-level winner receives a $1,000 prize as well as a collection of American history books and classroom resources. Additionally, all awardees become automatic finalists for the 2025 National History Teacher of the Year Award.

History was always Esselman’s favorite subject in school, and through his education at Saint Louis University High School, he was exposed to philosophy and theology, as well. His experience at SLUH led him to earn a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and religion at Truman State University. But when it came time to pursue a career, he knew teaching history was his calling.

Esselman came to UMSL in 1999 to earn his certification in social studies and a master’s degree in history. His decision was influenced by the sterling reputation of the College of Education’s teacher preparation program.

“I knew that UMSL, a wonderful university right in the heart of the metropolitan area, drawing a very diverse student body, would give me a lot of really excellent experiences,” he said. “I knew I would meet people of all different backgrounds, and I would be able to study with excellent professors.”

Esselman continued to further his education at UMSL, graduating with an MEd in educational administration in 2015 and an EdD in 2022. He completed his doctorate in Theresa Coble’s Heritage Leadership EdD cohort. Coble, the E. Desmond Lee Endowed Professor of Experiential and Family Education, designed the program to address topics such as justice, participatory democracy and service to the community through education.

That mission spoke to Esselman.

“Her program made me think, ‘You know, you can do something bigger involved with the community without leaving the classroom,’ and that’s the thing that really appealed to me,” he said. “I could still do the work that I love to do, day in and day out with students, but I could be part of a larger community, not just of scholars, but also a larger community in terms of service.”

Tackling thorny historical issues is at the heart of Esselman’s classroom. His students learn to delve into complexity rather than shying away from it through exercises like formal debates. The activity typically becomes a highlight of the semester.

“They form debate teams, and we do an Oxford-style debate that takes place in the classroom,” Esselman said. “It is an enormous thrill, not only for the students to prepare for the debate but to also participate. And participation does not necessarily mean being involved in their particular debate but experiencing the debates of their classmates.

“They really find it refreshing that you can have real, important, substantive disagreements about how to understand the past and yet maintain a level of civility and scholarship that creates an enormous learning experience.”

Another key aspect of Esselman’s approach to history education is teaching his students to evaluate and identify trustworthy sources of information. Like all teachers, he’s currently dealing with the challenge of low-quality information readily available on the internet. For him, the remedy has been using resources from reputable sources such as the Gilder Lehrman Institute and the Harvard Business School’s Case Method Project and leaning on local institutions such as UMSL and SLU.

By using these resources and engaging in debates, his students see firsthand what real research and scholarship looks like. They also become invested in timeless issues from human rights to the struggle for national power and begin to connect the past to the world around them in the present day.

“I want them to feel like they can think historically,” Esselman said. “The next time they see a story or get some understanding of what’s going on in the news, they are able to use skills that we’ve developed to think about sources, to think about the quality of the sources, to think about the diverse perspectives behind the sources. I think those are transferable skills. If they were to do more with history, I would be overjoyed. But I really just want them to be able to think critically.”