Teachers of the Year Brian Gaston from Hogg Middle School and Ashley Monteil from Lyons Elementary School. Click here to see more photos from the event.
The 2011-2012 Houston Independent School District teachers of the year were announced tonight during the Team HISD Celebration of Excellence ceremony at the Hiltons Americas Hotel. Lyons Elementary school teacher Ashley Monteil and Hogg Middle school teacher Brian Gaston were selected among 11,000 HISD teachers.
Monteil teaches second- and fourth-grade students at Lyons Elementary school. She was also nominated for Houston Area Association of Bilingual Education English as a Second Language Teacher of the Year. Monteil is a member of the gifted and talented committee which helps selects students for the gifted and talented program and she is also an active board member for Multicultural Education and Counseling through the Arts. Monteil’s colleagues say she is committed to educating the whole child with a focus on their growth, achievement, and character.
Gaston teaches social studies and U.S. History at Hogg Middle school and was recently named asa finalist for the Sue Lehman Award for Excellence. Gaston serves as the History Department content chairperson and is a member of the school’s Shared Decision Making Committee. He also serves as an advisor for Student Council and coaches the school’s speech and debate team. Gaston says he enjoys helping youth become effective communicators while helping them build their self-esteem and confidence.
The winners received $5,000, a plaque, and a custom made ring. The HISD Foundation and the Herff Jones Graduation Center were sponsors for this year’s ceremony.
President of the HISD Board of Education Michael Lunceford and Superintendent Terry Grier recognized the honorees at tonight’s ceremony.
“These teachers are just a glimpse of all of the talent that we have in our schools,” Lunceford said.
Dr. Grier said the teachers honored Thursday exemplify HISD’s efforts to place an effective teacher in every classroom. “The teachers that we’re honoring truly represent what this event is all about,” Dr. Grier said. “This celebration is one of the ways HISD strives every day to have an effective teacher in every classroom.”
Here are the other nominees for the 2011-2012 Elementary Teacher of the Year :
• Ana Lentz –Pilgrim Academy
• Nanette Musters – Mark Twain Elementary School
• Selene Rogers – Windsor Village Elementary School
• Maria Godoy – Port Houston Elementary School
• Lindsey MacLeod – Oak Forest Elementary School
• Benjamin Glover – Gallegos Elementary School
• Susan (Kim) O’Reilly – Roberts Elementary School
• Alaster Gaines – Crawford-Sherman Elementary School
• Cecily Stevens – The School at St. George Place
• Martha Garcia – Herrera Elementary School
• Ernie Bainbridge – Walnut Bend Elementary School
The Secondary Teacher of the Year Nominees for 2011-2012
• Timothy Daponte – Reagan High School
• Qian Zhang – DeBakey High School
• Tarhonda Greer – Jones High School
• Modesto Mendoza – Devry/CLC
• Mildred Williams – Hope Academy
• Margarita Castro – Madison High School
• Darryl Tricksey – Fondren Middle School
• Neda Khan – Black Middle School
• Camula Stanfield – Pershing Middle School
Each nominee submitted seven essays highlighting their professional history, philosophy of teaching, trends in education, personal teaching style, community involvement, and professional development. Various committees reviewed the entries and selected elementary and secondary teachers as finalists.
