Christian Teacher of the Year: Daniela Bergmann equips her students with biblical identity, forgiveness to face the world’s political divide 

In a society polarized by politics, Daniela Bergmann teaches her political science students what it means to live life with a biblical worldview, equipping them with scriptural definitions of identity and forgiveness.

Bergmann has been an educator for 10 years and currently teaches high school geography, history, political science and pre-law classes at Christian Fellowship School in Columbia, Missouri.

Her excellence and heart for people are among the reasons she is one of 12 instructors across the country named 2026 Christian Teacher of the Year by the Herzog Foundation, publisher of Heartlander News. She is honored as an Innovative Teacher of the Year.

Bergmann Ministries

Ministry plays an important role in Bergmann’s life and heavily influences her teaching as she and her husband, Jeff Bergmann, spend months of the year serving overseas, specifically in Ukraine, with their ministry, Bergmann Ministries. When she returns to school, she uses her valuable experiences to teach her students.

“I think the purpose of Christian education is to impart in our students a Christian worldview,” Bergmann told Heartlander News. “Outside of ministry, obviously this is a very secular world. … So, we want to equip them to be able to take their Christian worldview and their education and be able to use that wherever that is.”

Bergmann Ministries began when Jeff retired from the military after about 30 years of service and went into clinical psychology. Soon after he retired, the Russia-Ukraine War began, and he felt the Lord calling him to serve the people in Ukraine.

The ministry has since grown to serve at least three other countries, and the mission remains the same for each one – to train people in God’s word so they can share the gospel with their fellow citizens.

“They come and they get the training, and a lot of the training is how to use the Bible to comfort people in the face of tremendous, tremendous fear and pain,” Daniela Bergmann explained.

When she returns from trips, which she usually takes during summer, spring and fall breaks, Bergmann shows her students videos of what life is like for people in Ukraine with regular bomb threats awaking them most nights.

“When I come back, usually one of the very first things that I do is I share with them videos,” she said. “This is really important, because I think it’s one thing to see the bombings and what it’s like to actually live there. …

“It’s another thing when you know someone like your teacher and she comes back and actually shares a video.”

‘We’re all image bearers’ – hold fast to God’s truth

In her classes, Bergmann says it’s easy to tie her ministry into what she’s teaching. Her students learn about different government styles worldwide, conflicts such as those between Ukraine and Russia, worldwide political tensions, international law, President Donald Trump’s response to these issues and much more.

Bergmann and her students dive into how the U.S. responds to international issues and why the response differs based on who the current president is. They also look at what the news and media say about different events and topics, scouting for bias.

“This is where I love having older students, because we’re able to really examine what is going on in a way, in such that we can read the New York Times articles, we can watch the news articles,” she said.

In tackling a subject as broad and politically charged as worldwide conflict, Bergmann doesn’t rely on hate to fuel her lessons but rather God’s love as she reveals how the gospel and knowing Christ is the center to all issues.

“I’m trying to better help, in this case freshmen, understand that the young people that are in Ukraine are just like them,” she explained. “Just like the young people that are in Russia are just like them, which is why laying the groundwork for the gospel, which will then lead to forgiveness of all of the atrocities that are happening, are so important because we’re all image bearers.”

Even with experiencing the instability and grief of war firsthand in Ukraine, Bergmann still emphasizes the importance of forgiveness.

“I have felt peace about our time there and really feel that we’re called to be there and called to help people survive,” she explained. “And then we hope and pray in time also to then forgive everything that has been happening to them, so that they can go and share the gospel when the war is over.”

Another lesson to be learned – AI

Along with teaching about the world, Bergmann emphasizes the importance of learning how to use AI in her classroom.

She said whether a student will go into the ministry, the military, higher education or something else, they’ll likely be using AI in some capacity, which is why she tasks herself with teaching them how to use it ethically.

“Both the universities and the workforce now, AI has really just become commonplace and so we have to prepare our students to be able to use AI in a way that’s ethical but also really effective,” Bergmann said.

Bergmann teaches her students what’s okay and what’s not okay when using AI. For example, her students use it to find sources for topics they’re researching but can’t use it to write parts of an essay for them. Her main goal, she says, is to safeguard them from cheating with or stealing from AI.

Serving their nation’s capital

Alongside her family ministry, Bergmann also organizes a yearly mission trip to Washington, D.C., with her students, whom she praises for being hard workers outside the classroom, too.

“I teach in Columbia, Missouri, and I find that my students are these really hardy Midwestern kids, and I know that sounds ridiculous, but I will explain why it’s a difference,” Bergmann said.

Most of her students have very hard-working parents, many of whom are farmers, which she believes is a big contribution to the caliber of students in her classroom. This is especially obvious during the yearly mission trip, she said, where the kids work very hard on manual projects such as painting churches.

“So, that is what I love most about my kids, is you give them a project, they will take it on,” she said. “They are very enthusiastic.”

The Christian Teacher of the Year honor is part of the Herzog Foundation’s Excellence in Christian Education award series. Each of the 12 winners was invited to attend a special professional development and recognition event.