Finalists Announced in the 2008 H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards

Educators and School Districts to Compete on a Statewide Level for Cash Prizes
Totaling More Than $500,000

SAN ANTONIO, TX – Apr. 23, 2008 – H-E-B is proud to announce 40 Texas educators and eight school districts have been selected as finalists in the 2008 H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards. The finalists were chosen for their commitment to Texas children and their community. The H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards is the state’s largest monetary recognition program for Texas educators. The finalists represent the best and brightest in Texas education and stood out from 1,000 statewide applicants.

The honor was kept a surprise from the educators who learned of their special status when a group of H-E-B representatives visited their schools — bearing balloons, cake, and flowers — and presented each finalist with a cash award for themselves and one for their school. During the visits, 30 teachers were awarded $1,000 each plus a second $1,000 for their school. Ten principal finalists each received $1,000 for themselves and $2,500 for their school. The eight finalists in the large and small school district categories each received $5,000 and $2,500, respectively.  

All the finalists will now compete on a statewide level for larger cash prizes. The competition will be held in Houston May 2-3 with the awards celebration taking place on May 4, 2008 at The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center. At the celebration, 10 grand prize winners will be announced and awarded cash prizes totaling more than $500,000.

THE 2008 FINALISTS ARE:

Rising Star Elementary
Isabel Anaya, Eduardo Villarreal Elementary, San Antonio
Elaine Bailey, Zilker Elementary, Austin
Bonnie Cox, Dudley G/T Magnet School, Victoria
Jorge Limon, Garfield Elementary, Del Rio
Kasey Mathew, Benignus Elementary, Klein

*The Rising Star Elementary Category recognizes teachers with less than 10 years of experience. One winning teacher will receive a $5,000 check for themselves and a $5,000 grant for their schools.

Rising Star Secondary
Anna Davila, Sartartia Middle School, Sugar Land
Theresa (Tracey) King, Larry D. Guinn Special Programs Center, Plano
Kortnee Lamarre, East Central High School, San Antonio
Kimberly Rezk, Flour Bluff ISD High School, Corpus Christi
Georgina Streicher, Science Academy, Mercedes

*The Rising Star Secondary Category recognizes teachers with less than 10 years of experience. One winning teacher will receive a $5,000 check for themselves and a $5,000 grant for their school.

Leadership Elementary
Lynne Balbert, Hidden Forest Elementary, San Antonio
Angela Martin, Egly Elementary, Brownsville
Melissa Mott, Flour Bluff Intermediate, Corpus Christi
Leda Smith, G.W. Robinson Elementary, Seabrook
Stacey Shapiro, Zilker Elementary, Austin

*The Leadership Elementary Category honors teachers with 10 to 20 years in the classroom. One winner will receive a $10,000 check for themselves and a $10,000 grant for their school.

Leadership Secondary
Arnold Gutierrez, La Joya High School, La Joya
Marcella Gutierrez, Thomas Jefferson High School, San Antonio
Christie McWilliams, Cy-Fair High School, Cypress
Joel Price, Westwood Jr. High School, Dallas
Valerie Thiry, Yoakum Jr. High School, Yoakum

*The Leadership Secondary Category honors teachers with 10 to 20 years in the classroom. One winner will receive a $10,000 check for themselves and a $10,000 grant for their school.

Lifetime Achievement Elementary
Marta Galindo, Ruben Chavira Elementary, Del Rio
Debbie Hubenak, Jane Long Elementary, Richmond
Sue Kuentz, Stone Oak Elementary, San Antonio
Norma Longoria, Salazar Elementary, Robstown
Wilhemina Mills, Bethune Early Childhood Center, Temple
 
*The Lifetime Achievement Elementary Category salutes teachers with more than 20 years of experience. One winning teacher will receive $25,000 in cash for themselves and a $25,000 grant for their school.

Lifetime Achievement Secondary
Vinay Dulip, Foy H. Moody High School, Corpus Christi
Adriano Gonzalez, Oliver Wendell Holmes High School, San Antonio
Beverly Goodin Herrera, John B. Alexander High School, Laredo
Jody Hodges, Prairie Vista Middle School, Fort Worth
Paul Worosello, Klein Forest High School, Houston

*The Lifetime Achievement Elementary Category salutes teachers with more than 20 years of experience. One winning teacher will receive $25,000 in cash for themselves and a $25,000 grant for their school.

Elementary School Principal
Beth Dow, Velasquez Elementary, Richmond
Olivia Hernandez, Hidalgo High School, Hidalgo
Dr. Christine Marroquin, Early Childhood Development Center, Corpus Christi
Mary Smith, Emerson Elementary, Midland
Billy Snow, Bowie Elementary, Corsicana

*One winning principal in this category will receive $10,000 in cash for themselves and a $25,000 grant for their school.

Secondary School Principal
Yvonne Anglada, Kitty Hawk Middle School, Universal City
Susan Peterson, Weslaco East High School, Weslaco
Pamela Thomason, Lake Waco Montessori Magnet School, Waco
Kenneth Rohrbach, Three Rivers High School, Three Rivers
Diana Werner, Jane Long Middle School, Bryan

*One winning principal in this category will receive $10,000 in cash for themselves and a $25,000 grant for their school.

Large School District
Aldine ISD, Houston
Aransas County ISD, Rockport
Kerrville ISD, Kerrville
McAllen ISD, McAllen
Round Rock ISD, Round Rock

*The winning large school district chosen in this category will receive a $100,000 cash prize.

Small School District
Eula ISD, Clyde
Lackland ISD, San Antonio
Rapoport Academy, Waco

*The winning small school district chosen in this category will receive will receive a $50,000 cash prize.

About the H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards:
H-E-B launched the Excellence in Education Awards program in cooperation with the Texas Association of School Administrators in 2002 as a positive way to support public education in Texas. A major goal of the Excellence in Education awards is to make a statement about the great things going on in Texas public schools — to spotlight best practices and to celebrate the work of Texas educators. It has grown to become the largest monetary program for educators in the state.  

In order to find the best teachers, principals and districts in Texas, H-E-B began by asking customers, Partners (employees) and community members to submit the names of their favorite educators, administrators and districts. This year H-E-B received more than 4,500 nominations. Each nominee was sent an application packet asking them to share their professional experiences, educational philosophies and achievements both in and out of the classroom. 

H-E-B received 1,000 completed applications which were reviewed by a team of judges. They faced the difficult task of narrowing the field to 223 semi-finalists who then went on to compete in a regional judging process. Five regional judging panels comprised of former winners, administrators, and university and community leaders selected the 40 individual statewide finalists. All finalists will be invited to Houston, May 2-4, 2008, to compete on a state-wide level for larger cash prizes totaling more than $500,000.

At the celebratory dinner in Houston on May 4, 10 finalists, after participating in personal interviews before a panel of judges, will be announced as grand-prize winners. These winners will be comprised of two principals, six teachers and two school districts, one large and one small.   

Each winning principal—one elementary school and one high school—will each receive $10,000 in cash for themselves and a $25,000 grant for their schools. The winning large school district will receive a $100,000 cash prize and the winning small school district will receive $50,000.

The six winning teachers will include one elementary and one secondary teacher in each of three categories:

• The Rising Star Award — honors exceptionally promising teachers with less than 10 years of experience. These winners will each receive a $5,000 check for themselves and a $5,000 grant for their schools.

• The Leadership Award — recognizes teachers with 10 to 20 years in the classroom. These winners will each receive a $10,000 check for themselves and a $10,000 grant for their schools.

• The Lifetime Achievement Award — salutes teachers with more than 20 years of experience. These teachers will each receive $25,000 in cash for themselves and a $25,000 grant for their schools.

About H-E-B
For more than 100 Years, H-E-B has been an innovative retailer. Known for its fresh food, quality products, convenient services, and a commitment to environmental responsibility and sustainability, H-E-B strives to provide the best customer experience at every day low prices. Based in San Antonio, H-E-B employs more than 60,000 Partners and serves millions of customers in more than 150 communities throughout Texas and Mexico. For more information, visit www.heb.com.