Region 12 Teachers of the Year Announced

WACO, Texas – Two outstanding Central Texas educators have been chosen as the 2011 Region 12 Teachers of the Year (TOTY). The Region 12 Elementary TOTY is Billie Diaz of Copperas Cove ISD, while Diane Untalan of Killeen ISD is the Secondary TOTY, Education Service Center (ESC) Region 12 announced. Both Diaz and Untalan will advance to represent Region 12 for the Texas Teacher of the Year accolade.

“We are so proud to hear that these wonderful and deserving teachers are being recognized for their hard work and dedication to teaching students,” said Dr. Tom Norris, executive director of ESC Region 12. “The commitment they have to being a good teacher, motivator and mentor is truly an inspiration.”

Both Diaz and Untalan were chosen by a panel of representatives from local teacher and administrator organizations. The teachers’ applications involved responses to topics including education history and professional development, professional biography, community involvement, philosophy of teaching, education issues and trends, the teaching profession and their potential message to the public as state teacher of the year.

Diaz has served as an educator for seven years and has spent the last three at Martin Walker Elementary teaching third grade inclusion classes. Prior to teaching, Diaz worked for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. By interacting with many offenders who never finished their education, she was inspired to become a teacher that students would remember. She is a model to her peers as she continuously strives to improve herself and provide examples of good character, responsible citizenship, and educational excellence.

Diaz earned her degree from Bellevue University, and has continued to extend her education and leadership beyond the classroom. She has served as the Martin Walker third grade chair and PTA member for five years, is the 3-Tier Leadership Team facilitator, an interventionist for math and reading, and a mentor for the Ready, Set, Teach program. Diaz has also received the Applebee’s Teacher of the Month award on four occasions.

Untalan, Region 12’s Secondary TOTY, has been an educator for nine years and teaches eighth grade science at Charles Patterson Middle School in Killeen. She has also coached volleyball, basketball and track for more than 10 years. Upon earning a degree from Tennessee State University, she discovered a passion to teach. Through her studies she developed the belief in a mind that desires to live is a mind that chooses to learn. Her teaching technique is based on nurturing, developing and encouraging children to become self-motivated. Over the years, Untalan has obtained a diverse collection of experiences, which make her a positive influence in the classroom and community.

In Charles Patterson Middle School’s inaugural year, Untalan developed and implemented a science tutoring program that resulted in an 82 percent passing rate for the eighth grade science TAKS test. She is also involved in the site-based decision-making committee, the Middle Years program, and has served as a member of the National Education Association, the Texas Girls’ Coaches Association and the National Science Teachers Association. She has also presented trainings for Cooperative Learning and Classroom Management at the middle school level, as well as volunteered at Fort Hood’s Family Readiness Group.

The Texas Teacher of the Year will be announced at the awards ceremony in October. For more information regarding this process, visit the TEA TOTY website.

ESC Region 12 will also honor its TOTY honorees in the fall, along with the Superintendent and School Board of the Year recipients. For more information, visit www.esc12.net/awards.

About the Texas Teacher of the Year Program (TOTY)
Texas Teacher of the Year is the highest honor that the State of Texas can bestow upon a teacher. Conducted by the Texas Education Agency, the Texas Teacher of the Year Program annually recognizes and rewards teachers who have demonstrated outstanding leadership and excellence in teaching. Forty teachers – two from each Regional Education Service Center – are eligible for two titles, Texas Elementary Teacher of the Year and Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year. Additional program information is available at www.tea.state.tx.us/awards/toy.

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