A shocked and utterly grateful Killeen ISD kindergarten teacher paused her class Thursday as a procession of colleagues, school and district leaders, her spouse and her daughter burst into the classroom to reveal the good news.
Killeen ISD’s Elementary Teacher of the Year is Rosabelle Montero, a bilingual kindergarten teacher at Peebles Elementary School.
Peebles Principal Shakira Bodon-Ramos and others who know Montero well describe her humility and complete commitment to serving students.
“It’s a very humbling experience for me,” the award-winning teacher said just after finding out she was KISD’s elementary teacher of the year. “I’m grateful for my colleagues. It’s really an honor because I feel like I’m representing each of the hard-working teachers.”
Montero’s early education took place in her native Puerto Rico, before she earned a bachelor’s degree in legal studies from the University of Maryland and a master’s degree in children’s literacy development from Trident University International.
Though she dreamed of becoming a lawyer in her younger years, volunteering in her daughter’s school shifted her perspective.
She worked as a teacher assistant at Pershing Park Elementary one year, before beginning as a bilingual teacher, first at Pershing Park and later at Peebles. She is in her 17th year teaching.
“It’s very special because I can relate to them,” she said of teaching bilingual students. “I was taught English since first grade (in Puerto Rico), but we really didn’t practice English.”
During a stint in Germany with her soldier husband, the bilingual teacher said she was self-conscious of her Spanish accent. Now, she helps her young students as they learn two languages and a new culture.
“I noticed in my students they were self-conscious talking to me. I relate to them. I share with them. I still make mistakes. We are learning English every day. That has made me more knowledgeable about the process going on in their head as they learn.”
“I also relate to the parents because they are in the same situation that I was in years ago with that language barrier. It helps me open a door for them.”
Even teaching prekindergarten and kindergarten students, Montero guides her young children through an inquiry process that includes research and presenting findings through written and visual reports.
“This lesson reflects my belief that every student can succeed when presented with activities that cater to different learning styles,” she said in a written response.
Some of her students enter kindergarten with no formal schooling. “I feel I’m laying a strong foundation for them.”
“Sometimes physically you get tired, but it’s very rewarding. I look at a picture of them, especially now at the end of the year,” she said. “They are taller. They are more independent. For me, that is really a source of satisfaction.”
“They learn to read and write a sentence, but also their social and emotional development – you see their improvement, you see them be able to express what they feel, what they think, and that is the part I enjoy the most.”
A year ago, when Peebles experienced a teacher shortage, Montero requested to combine a bilingual class without a fulltime teacher with hers, giving her 29 kindergarten students. By the end of the year, the class contained 32 students.
“It was loud. It was crowded. At the end, we were a family,” she said. She developed a system, assigning students as table leaders to help her work through each activity.
“I wanted to dedicate time to each of them because that was the deal I made with their parents…Sometimes I thought, ‘I don’t know what I was thinking.’”
“It was a successful year. We were able to cover everything in the curriculum and some extra.” She identified students ready for learning English phonics and worked in small groups to creatively serve each individual student.
Montero praised her classroom assistant and her students’ active parents for supporting her through the challenging year, always encouraging her and jumping in to help.
“One of the most critical parts of the day was our morning circle,” she said of her large class of 5-year-olds last school year.
“We used this time to build positive relationships between students and the teacher. Students got to know each other and voiced their concerns when something bothered them. We discussed emotions, character traits, social skills, and issues affecting their learning.”
This year, the first-graders from Montero’s class continue to look with joy at their kindergarten teacher of a year ago. “Somehow, having that many students, we created an even stronger bond,” she said.
Still learning and growing as an instructor, the exceptional teacher said she’s been offered administrative posts over the years but remains committed to the calling of the classroom.
She is part of the Dual Language Teacher Leader Team aligning KISD curriculum for English, Spanish and math as the district implements the Dual Language Program for the first time.
Her motivation to keep working so hard goes back to the beginning. Both her parents were teachers.
Today, when Montero visits friends and family in Puerto Rico, people treat her as someone special because of her parents’ legacies in the classroom.
“I always love to hear the stories that they share because I can see the impact that my parents had on their life, and I always tell myself, ‘I have huge shoes to fill’ because I want to rise up to that same standard,” she said, speaking in Spanish.
“I want to be that teacher for them as well that they can remember me and not only remember that I taught them math, science, social studies, but that they can remember me as a human being and how much they are valued and that’s what I want to leave in the life of my students.”
This year’s elementary and secondary teacher of the year receive $5,000 apiece. The 10 KISD teacher of the year finalists receive $1,000 each. The other campus-level teachers of the year receive $500 each.
A group of district leaders presented surprise awards to the finalists on Wednesday. The secondary teacher of the year presentation is scheduled separately.
The elementary finalists are Antoinette Yuille, Brookhaven Elementary; Calvin Payno, Carney Elementary; Noris Garagate, Cavazos Elementary; Sarah Barnum, Clifton Park Elementary; Omar Esson, Fowler Elementary; and Michelle DeWees, Saegert Elementary; .
The secondary finalists are Angela Elliott, Audie Murphy Middle School; Sarah Crawford, Career Center; Jimmy Hammond, Killeen High School; and Shatira Harris, Palo Alto Middle School.
