Current MaST Awardees

Ms. Eileen Rico's student teacher writes:

"She consistently demonstrates excellence in teaching, professionalism, and meaningful support for developing educators. Her mentorship consistently empowered me. She treated me as a professional, trusted me with responsibility, and supported the development of my identity as an educator. She helped students recognize me as their teacher and encouraged them to engage with me in that role. Through her guidance, I felt accepted, capable, and confident in my ability to teach.”

Ms. Alessandra Rey's mentor teacher writes:

"This scholar exemplifies what it means to be a thoughtful, student-centered educator. Through creative and engaging activities, she consistently meets students at their level, ensuring access and success for all learners. She has shown significant growth this semester and has interacted very well with my students. For example, she has made a genuine effort to learn their names, and my students have truly enjoyed having her in the classroom."

Mr. Irvin Torres Infante's mentor teachers write:

"Second day in the classroom and he was ready to teach the whole class. One of his concerns was building student connections with the middle schoolers, but he has quite excelled in that aspect. Many of the students even brought him treats for Valentines day. He is not afraid to step in and help the students when need be. I can pull a small group and he is walking around helping everyone else. He takes charge of the classroom when he is teaching."

"As my first scholar, I can say without hesitation that he stands out as one of the most proactive and dedicated future educators I’ve ever had the privilege to work with and has set a remarkably high bar for performance for any scholar that follows. From the outset, he demonstrated a level of dedication that is rare among scholars. From the very start, he showed a level of initiative that took me by surprise. He didn't wait for his official start date to get involved; he reached out and came into the classroom early just to get a feel for the environment and meet the students. By the time his first official week rolled around, he wasn't just observing from the back of the room—he was already at the front of the class teaching. That kind of "can-do" attitude is exactly what makes a great teacher.”