HOUSTON, TX – Texas Teachers, the state’s largest alternative certification program, has announced Mark Rogers, a Math teacher at Westwood High School in Round Rock Independent School District in the greater Austin area, as the winner of its 2010-2011 “Teacher of the Year” award. Rogers has been chosen from a rigorous selection process from a pool of approximately 3,000 successful new teachers from across Texas. The winner exemplifies the potential of alternate route teachers and the success they achieve during their first year in the classroom. This prestigious award comes with a cash prize of $2,500 along with an additional $2,500 awarded to the campus. Texas Teachers officially recognized Rogers outstanding achievement by formally presenting the award on the Westwood High campus.
Rogers received enthusiastic nominations by both his principal, Rebecca Donald and his Texas Teachers professional coach, Sarah Coy. Of Rogers, Donald called him: “one of the most outstanding first year teachers I have worked with in my twenty-seven year career in public education. He is an exceptional model of professionalism in his manner, his consistent high level of performance, and his positive attitude toward students.”
The quality that most distinguishes Rogers as an exemplary teacher is his personal commitment to every student learning. He has engineered creative strategies to ensure that every child in his classroom is engaged and successful. From recording songs about math to creating focused tutorial sessions and mentoring struggling students, Rogers refuses to rest until every student is learning.
