2026 Lee County Golden Apple Teacher: Darielle Callender

FORT MYERS, Fla. —

At Franklin Park Elementary in Fort Myers, kindergarten teacher Darielle Callender has her students captivated.

You'd never guess that she considers herself a shy person.

"When you see me in that classroom, it's like a totally different person," Callender said, laughing. "I just transform in the classroom."

After seeing her with students, you'd also never guess that teaching wasn't her first career.

Callender worked for a decade in healthcare administration but was left searching for something.

"What is my purpose on Earth?" she recalled thinking. "Where can I go and what can I do, where I can do something that I'll be able to leave a lasting impact on somebody?"

That search didn't lead her somewhere new. It led her somewhere familiar.

"My mom actually was a student at Franklin Park when she was a kid. My husband and I attended Franklin Park together as elementary students," Callender said. "So, it's just always been a part of my family and a part of my history."

Now, she's giving back to the very place — the very community — that once gave her so much.

She's pouring into the students like her teachers once did.

"She has the best class, she has the best teacher, the best students," student Brooklyn Elliott said.

"I genuinely love her because of the fact that she has that persona about her," Lillie McCrea, the classroom grandma, said. "She's stern, and she's firm. But yet, you can feel the warmth."

Last year, Callender teamed up with her classroom to write and publish a book.

Each day, she's helping write the stories of the next generation.

She's proving that it’s never too late to find and fulfill your true calling.

"When I'm gone, long gone, somebody will think about me and (say), 'Darielle was a part of my life. And she made me a better person.' And this is what drew me to be a teacher. And I think that I'm really serving a purpose," Callender said.

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