Dr. Lupita Hinojosa, Spring ISD chief school leadership and support services officer, from left, pins a Spring ISD pin on Richard Smith’s lapel after he was recognized as a Houston Area Alliance of Black School Educators Campus Teacher of the Year.
HOUSTON – Feb. 12, 2018 – Fourteen Spring ISD elementary, middle and high school teachers were honored Wednesday, Feb. 7, by the Houston Area Alliance of Black School Educators (HAABSE) during the organization’s Outstanding Teacher Awards and Recognition Ceremony, held at the Bayou City Event Center in Houston. All 14 of the teachers from Spring ISD were recognized as HAABSE Campus Teachers of the Year.
Honorees from across the region, including those attending from Spring ISD, took part in an awards banquet and ceremony highlighting the work of educators and their impact on students and the community. Superintendent Rodney E. Watson, who attended the event in support of the Spring ISD teachers, congratulated them all on behalf of the district and its families.
“It was great to be at the HAABSE awards ceremony and see some of our Spring ISD educators being singled out and recognized for what they do,” Watson said. “They represent the tremendous dedication, talent and professionalism that we celebrate in our teachers. They’re all passionate about serving our community, and I’m proud to call them Spring ISD teachers.”
The group of honorees from Spring ISD represented a cross-section of the district’s elementary, middle and high school campuses:
- Wendy Apanco – Heritage Elementary School
- Alcide Boutte – Booker Elementary School
- Shundra Carthern – Reynolds Elementary School
- Janet Clay- Goodwyn – Thompson Elementary School
- Detra Conner – Beneke Elementary School
- Jerry Griffin – Bammel Middle School
- Chimere Holman – McNabb Elementary School
- Seba Houston – Lewis Elementary School
- Cassie Landrew – Spring Early College Academy
- Ayesha Lewis – Meyer Elementary School
- Tonya Newton – Claughton Middle School
- Richard Smith – Burchett Elementary School
- Angela Veals-Johnson – Twin Creeks Middle School
- Natalie Wood – Bammel Elementary School
The annual event, now in its 31st year, was established to recognize the commitment and contributions of area educators and to give members of the regional community an opportunity to celebrate the work done by teachers in the classroom. In addition to the recognition of campus teachers, the HAABSE Teacher of the Year winners were also announced. Scholarships were also awarded to two Houston-area high school seniors planning to major in education.