EPISD Elementary
Teacher of the Year
Region 19 Elementary
Teacher of the Year


Kay Taggart
Crockett Elementary

“I try to make my students’ voices primary in my classroom. I must not be the one who talks the most. They have so much to say — to me, to each other, to the world.”

EPISD Secondary
Teacher of the Year


Ophelia Juab De Guia
Jefferson High

“Teaching has so much to offer in life, not only for the sake of the learners, but also for myself; not just because I teach, but also because I learn as I teach.”

FINALIST

Alma Stevenson
Beall Elementary

“An effective teacher holds high expectations and has knowledge of the students’ culture and individual needs, and draws from every single strategy to motivate and help students thrive … .”

Monica Lawson
Bradley Elementary

“I feel called to inspire our learning community. Show a person what you believe they are capable of and they will often rise to that expectation.”

Rosalinda Ortiz
Cooley Elementary

“As teachers, we need to help our students overcome the greatest challenge of all — to believe in themselves. When they believe, then they will succeed!”

Bonnie Fraire
Western Hills Elementary

“Teachers may not make great leaps and bounds in some life-changing way, but we can change the world one student at a time.”

Mohammed Djebrane
Canyon Hills Middle

“Students come to us with an appetite for knowing and a capacity to learn, and what I do is feed this hunger and refine that ability and build upon their skills of being able to learn… .”

Livian Baity
Richardson Middle

“At the heart of what I believe to be true about teaching is my belief that every child can succeed and that there is never a reason for any student to fail.”

Carl McCaig
Franklin High

“Along with knowledge and enthusiasm, you need to care about your students. You need to respect them, be interested in them as individuals and, more importantly, enjoy being around them.”

Margaret Zumr
Silva Health Magnet

“Teach beyond the test, way beyond the test. Basic skills are just that — basic, minimal. If we aim too low, we will hit the dirt.”