School Board honors Educators of the Year
Twelve outstanding educators were recognized by the Plainview ISD Board of Trustees at their regular meeting on May 17.
The honored educators are recipients of the 2017-2018 Educator of the Year awards for their respective campuses. The award is the highest award given to teachers by the district.
Each of the recipients, selected by vote of their campus peers, was awarded a personalized plaque recognizing their accomplishment. Additionally, their names have been engraved on permanent plaques displayed at their campus. Recipients will also be recognized during convocation ceremonies in August.
Profiles of the Educators of the Year:
Denise Kellum, Plainview High School, has been an educator for 34 years. She was a home school teacher for 10 years before joining Plainview ISD 24 years ago. She taught in a Special Education functional academics classroom for four years at Lakeside Fifth Grade Learning Center and taught Special Education content mastery, inclusion and resource for 15 years at La Mesa Elementary. In her current position at PHS, she teaches Special Education functional academics and Community Based Instruction (CBI).
Annette Coon, Ash High School, is in her first year as a Career and Technology Education (CTE) teacher. She previously taught two years as a business teacher at Plainview High School. Before joining the district, she taught general education for a brief period of time at Formby Prison. Teaching is Annette’s second career; she worked for 20 years in various administrative roles in higher education.
Claudia Howell, Ash High School, is in her second year as a social studies teacher at Ash. She has been an educator in our community for 16 years and served as a social studies teacher at Plainview Christian Academy prior to joining Plainview ISD.
Whitney Schafer, Coronado Middle School, is completing 15 years with Plainview ISD. She is currently an eighth grade English/language arts teacher. She has also served the district as a seventh grade English / language arts teacher and a Secondary Instructional Coach.
Olivia Stanfield, Estacado Middle School, is completing her third year in Plainview ISD. She is currently the social and emotional learning teacher, a position she has held for two years. Prior to taking her current position, she worked as a substitute for the district and as a paraprofessional at Plainview High School. She also worked two years at Wilkerson Intermediate School in Conroe ISD.
Lisa Carri, College Hill Elementary, is completing her first year with Plainview ISD. She is a second grade teacher. She previously taught for seven years in the El Paso ISD.
Rebekah Mize, Edgemere Elementary, is completing 30 years as an educator, 28 of those years with Plainview ISD. She is currently a fifth grade science teacher. During her 23 years at Lakeside 5th Grade Learning Center she taught resource, math, social studies, language arts, reading and science. Prior to coming to Plainview she taught two years in Lubbock ISD.
Jalee Victory, Highland Elementary, is completing her third year as a fifth grade reading teacher with Plainview ISD. Before joining the district, she taught in Oklahoma for six years. She also taught fourth and fifth grade English/ language arts in Kress ISD for one year.
Kelly Mendoza, Hillcrest Elementary, is completing 11 years with the district. She is currently a bilingual kindergarten teacher. She has also taught second and third grade. She taught for seven years at College Hill Elementary before moving to Hillcrest. Prior to joining the district, she worked in the Business Office at Valley School in Turkey, Texas. This is her second time to receive the Educator of the Year award; she also received the award at College Hill for the 2013-2014 school year.
Catherine Dunn, Hillcrest Elementary, is completing her fourth year as a fifth grade math teacher. She previously taught a year at Akin Elementary in Hale Center ISD.
Alicia Ramirez, La Mesa Elementary, has been an educator for 28 years and has worked in Plainview Schools for eight years. She is currently a first grade bilingual teacher. She has also taught at Edgemere Elementary, Hale Center ISD, and Denver City ISD. Prior to becoming a teacher, she was an assistant for one year at Ash Learning Center. This is her second time to receive this award. She was Educator of the Year at Edgemere in 2014.
Rita Rodriguez, Thunderbird Elementary, currently teaches third grade. She has worked for the district for seven years. She is in her second year as a teacher. She previously worked as a paraprofessional in special education at Highland and at Plainview High School.
