Shanekia Hall, who teaches at Ponderosa Elementary, earned the honor and a prize of $5,000, according to an Aug. 23 news release.
Before being named the winner by a community vote, Hall was selected to be a top-five finalist among 198 nominees from schools across Texas, Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina and South Carolina.
“Just to be nominated was major for me, because it shows that others are seeing the work being put in behind the scenes and acknowledging that there is progress being made,” Hall said. “There's people that actually still love their profession and are willing to go above and beyond for every student that they come across every single day.”
Hall has been working in education for about four years, starting off as a paraprofessional in special education for other school districts. Hall was hired at SISD for the 2021-22 school year, which she said was her first year teaching in her own classroom.
“Building relationships has been one of the best things this year. ... I have great relationships with all the parents in my classroom,” Hall said. “I'm able to discuss every aspect of their child's development, whether it's behavioral, academic or just to simply check in.”
Growing up in Jamaica, Hall said her parents died while she was a child, and her teachers played a tremendous role in her life. From grades 4-6, Hall said her teachers helped tutor her after school hours whenever she needed it, and she still remembers all of her teachers’ names.
Hall said her own teachers’ kindness is what inspired her to pursue a career in education.
“I wanted to pay it forward for a child or for kids that may just need one person in their life that would see their potential and know that, ‘Hey, this child will make a difference—they just need the support,’” Hall said.
