Early Monday morning at McNabb Elementary School, students were busy inside their classrooms, learning and getting back into the routine after the weekend. But for one kindergarten class, a Prize Parade temporarily turned this otherwise ordinary Monday morning into something a little different.

That is because their teacher, Claudia Diaz-Busti, was surprised by members of the district’s Career and Technical Education department as the winner of the  district’s Career Awareness Poster and Project Contest. Diaz-Busti was the Teacher Winner of the contest for her replica of McNabb Elementary School and her essay declaring her hope to be principal of that school one day.

The essay and project were a part of the annual contest that helps celebrate Career and Technical Education (CTE) Awareness Month, which occurs every February.

“Thank you so much, this is such a nice surprise,” Diaz-Busti said. “I did this as an activity for myself as well as the kids. The guidance provided by my mentor, the visionary leadership demonstrated by my principal, and the unwavering support from my assistant principal have been instrumental in my professional growth.”

There were submissions from across the district that turned creativity into projects that highlighted not only career awareness but also their own career goals.

Elementary students created posters that highlighted their career dreams, while middle school and high school students submitted posters, essays, or poems on various careers. Teachers were also invited to participate by creating murals, digital displays, or bulletin boards to foster career ambitions in their students.

“Career and technical education is such a vital part of Spring ISD, and giving our students the opportunity to explore all the career options available to them is our main goal,” Cynthia Williams, Spring ISD’s Director of Career and Technical Education said. “It is always such a joy to see the creativity and the ingenuity that goes into these projects every single year, and to get to experience first hand the dreams and aspirations of our students and teachers.”

Projects were submitted In February with the winning pieces from each campus proceeding on to the district-level judging. On Monday, a “prize parade” of Spring ISD CTE administrators and CTE counselors traveled across the district to surprise students and the teacher chosen as this year’s district winners.

This year’s winning students include:

• Poster, Elementary School – Elliana Albarran, Major Elementary
• Poster, Middle School – Ximena Ortiz, Twin Creeks Middle School
• Poster, High School – Jade Herbert, Westfield High School
• Poetry, Middle School – Ashley Nguyen, Roberson Middle School
• Poetry, High School – Camilo Huerta, Wunsche High School
• Essay, Middle School –  Lily Castillo, Wells Middle School
• Essay, High School – Joshua Perez, Wunsche High School
• Teacher Display – Claudia Diaz-Busti, McNabb Elementary

District winners received fire HD8 Plus Kindles to support literacy in Spring ISD.