Jim Fornaciari, far right in the light blue shirt, has earned the 2014 AP Teacher of the Year award for the Midwest Region. He graduated from Illinois State in 1985 and started his teaching career at Normal Community. (Photo courtesy Glenbard West)

By Joe Ragusa

GLEN ELLYN – A teacher who started his career at Normal Community is now the Advanced Placement Teacher of the Year for the Midwest.

Jim Fornaciari was hired by Normal Community after he graduated from Illinois State in 1985.

"In those days, that was literally a block from campus, at the most," Fornaciari said. "They've torn it down and moved the building now, so there's still two high schools (in Normal), but original building I was at is gone."

Fornaciari left for a job in Naperville in 1988 and was eventually hired by Glenbard West, where he helped develop the AP European History course at the high school in 2005.

"Some of these kids are so strong, its almost like you have to stay out of their way," Fornaciari said.

99 percent of his students that take the AP exam receive college credit. He was awarded the 2014 AP Teacher of the Year earlier this year for the Midwest region, which includes Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

Joe Ragusa can be reached at [email protected].