Panther Nation News
February Edition
The Paschal Pyramid
Celebrating our pyramid's Teachers of the Year
Paschal High School
Principal: Troy Langston
Teacher of the year: Kendall McFadden has been the anchor of Paschal's Algebra I team for several years. It is not a job many desire, but he willingly steps up an does this difficult task with skill and grace. He builds meaningful relationships with all his students. His students credit him with their renewed interested and confidence in math; he is a tough act to follow! Kendall is always willing to go the extra mile and do what's best for his students and his team. We are so lucky to have him at Paschal.
Daggett Middle School
Tracy Smith, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Hannah Kiessling, 6th Grade Science.
This teacher has demonstrated a strong skillset in many areas relative to student success. As a third year teacher she is an exemplar in growth mindset when it comes to classroom management, delivery of instruction and building student relationships. Our announcements end everyday with "If no one at Daggett has told you, we here at Daggett we love you." I had a student come up and tell me that Ms. Kiessling tells her regularly that she is loved. Ms. Kiessling makes Daggett proud in every way.
Daggett Elementary School
Kendall Miller, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Rachel Beck is a 2nd grade Regular Program teacher at E. M. Daggett Elementary. Ms. Beck has a Growth Mindset and works relentlessly to ensure all students learn. Ms. Beck demonstrates outstanding teacher leadership and excellence in teaching.
De Zavala Elementary School
Marlette Martinez, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Ingriz Lopez, 3rd Grade ESL Self-Contained
Mrs. Lopez is an amazing team-player and goes above and beyond with her students, colleagues, and families. Her professional learning sessions are informative and efficient. Mrs. Lopez has continued to be adaptable and is always willing to share her knowledge with others. Mrs. Lopez has shared innovative ideas regarding student engagement and is laser focused on meeting students' academic and social-emotional needs. Mrs. Lopez's classroom culture is felt as her goal is always to make the learning impactful and fun. Lopez's wisdom and intuition along with her high expectations are evident. Mrs. Lopez is flexible, incredibly generous, dedicated, loving, wise, resilient, and graceful in the face of adversity and constant change. Most of all, Lopez loves her students. Her kind spirit has left a mark on the hearts of all those who have had the privilege to be in her class. When you are in Mrs. Lopez's classroom, you are truly a part of something special! We are forever proud and blessed to have Mrs. Lopez as part of our De Zavala Familia!
McLean Middle School
Barbara Ozuna, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Mr. Joshua Howton-Torres has taught at McLean since January, 2017. In that time, he has served on CERC, DERC, and the Attendance Committee. In addition to rigorous instruction and coaching his students to academic success, he has lead Student Council, created a popular public speaking class, and, most recently, successfully took on the challenge of Yearbook and Newspaper, growing the class from 12 students to over 50. When asked to stretch, he does so willingly because he believes that what we do here matters.
He has shared many effective classroom management strategies, new technologies, and ways to communicate with stakeholders, adding value to his team. His students often speak of the safety they feel in his classroom as he encourages academic risk taking and emphasizes relationship building. Mr. Torres values each student at our school and has been part of many planning groups to make sure everyone feels they truly matter at McLean.
McLean 6th
Principal, Karen Brown
Teacher of the year: Tammy Nitschke. She teaches ELA. Tammy has elevated our entire campus in how to use data to respond to kids needs. Tammy's kindness and sense of urgency to help our students succeed is contagious. We are extremely lucky to have her as part of our Blue Jay Family.
George C. Clarke Elementary School
Brenda Fouse, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Shannon Brewer,4th Grade Regular Program.
Ms. Brewer is a teacher who cares deeply for her students and builds strong relationships with them while also holding them accountable. She is is creative and invests a great deal of energy and thought into the activities that her students learn from.
Lily B Clayton Elementary School
Kate Andersen, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Mrs. Rebeca Fonseca Rivera is our dyslexia teacher. She was nominated as teacher of the year due to her passion for helping all students. Mrs. Fonseca works with teachers and MTSS teams to ensure that all of our students that need extra help due to Dyslexia have the opportunity to receive it. Even though they are pulled from class, the students can’t wait to get to work with Ms. Fonseca.
Alice Contreras Elementary School
Amelia Rangel, Principal
Alice D. Contreras’ Teacher of the Year: Guadalupe Ortega, 3rd Grade RP Literacy
Mr. Ortega goes above and beyond to support his students with their academic success as well as their social emotional needs. Mr. Ortega motivates his students to become better every day and celebrates their growth. He is a passionate teacher, who also goes above and beyond to help our school community.
Overton Park Elementary School
Connie Smith, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Katie Hartz is a kind and respectful teacher to both her students, families, and colleagues. Katie is an excellent instructor that is dedicated to every student's success. She brings fun and new ideas to our team. Katie is always willing to step up and do whatever is needed; she always goes above and beyond. Katie is a great teammate. She doesn't gloss over hard things or act like everything is fine when problems arise. Instead, she comes up with creative solutions and works to make things better for all of us, teachers and students. Katie is a hard worker, she organizes running club, is a team leader, plans 1st grade's science lab (and discusses it with parents), and does many other behind the scenes activities. Katie is the kind of teacher we all aspire to be.
Tanglewood Elementary School
Dana McKenzie, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Mrs. Stephanie Plotner has taught PK and KG at Tanglewood Elementary for eleven years. She is an expert in educational technology and a natural leader. Her expectations are high for all students and she cares deeply about their success
Westcliff Elementary School
Ebony McDonald, Principal
Teacher of the Year: Rachel White, 4th Grade, Self-Contained
Rachel isn't afraid to take risks and try something new. She has a growth mindset and instills one in each of her students as well. She shares her ideas with others and asks for help when needed. She has strong bonds with her students and their parents. She takes time to teach social-emotional skills when lacking and speaks with her students in a calm way, to help guide them into solving their own problems.