We are in complete awe of the teachers who were nominated in Alamo City’s Amazing Teacher contest! We asked our readers to nominate teachers who have made an impact in their and their children’s lives. With over 7,000 teachers in one San Antonio school district alone, there are thousands of wonderful educators in the San Antonio community, and we are honored to be featuring some of them today.

We will be introducing you to our finalists through a series of posts throughout the day. We want our readers to help us determine who will receive the title of Alamo City’s Amazing Teacher!

Voting will open Monday, May 4 and continue through Thursday, May 7 at noon. To cast your vote, simply scroll down to the bottom of this post. Our winner will be announced on Friday, May 8.

Without further ado and in alphabetical order (because teachers love order, right?), here is our second group of Amazing Teachers!

Amy Cody

Northside ISD, Scarborough Elementary; Special Education, 3rd and 4th Grades

Nominated by Holly Coleman

I have seen Ms. Cody make an impact on the lives of hundreds of children with special needs. She is the teacher working late hours, skipping lunches, and spending her weekends devoted to her school children. She is more patient, kinder, and more dedicated to her kids than I see in most schools. She is constantly seeking ways to help her kids and filling out grants for funding to expand their learning. She has deserved to be honored for a very long time![hr]

Hannah Cooper

North East ISD, Castle Hills Elementary; Kindergarten

Nominated by Candice Curry

I met Miss Cooper the day I walked my then-six-year-old autistic daughter into her class to start Kindergarten. She stood at the door and greeted each family as if they were the only family she was meeting that day. I wanted to pull her aside and tell her how special my daughter was and all of her special needs quirks, but I found out quickly that I wouldn’t need to. Miss Cooper knew.

She knew that each child was special and treated each one with great care and love. She never became frazzled when my daughter would have meltdowns and would sit on the floor with my daughter, hugging her until she could calm down. Miss Cooper knew. One day Miss Cooper put earphones on my daughter and proudly walked her out to our car. Miss Cooper and my daughter smiled while my heart broke. That moment changed my family’s and daughter’s life. The earphones saved my little girl from stress and calmed down her mind during school. Miss Cooper knew. Miss Cooper, the principal, and another teacher came to our house with cookies and books so that our autistic daughter could see them outside of the school and relate to them on a different level. She sat and read to my little girl in our living room. Miss Cooper knew.

Almost three years later, Miss Cooper continues to keep constant contact with me, checking on Justin (our daughter) throughout the day and always reminding me how much she loves her and how special she is. Miss Cooper proudly wears a Team Justin shirt to show her support for Justin and her autism awareness campaign. Miss Cooper doesn’t just go into class each day to teach the kids reading and writing. She goes in each day with a loving heart. Her mission is to show each child that they are cherished, unique, and a huge blessing to her. Miss Cooper knows.[hr]

Mimi Fisher

Archdiocese of San Antonio, Mount Sacred Heart; Kindergarten

Nominated by Jennifer Russell

Mrs. Fisher is a vibrant, wonderful teacher. She is a second mother to the 24 students in her class. She makes learning fun by teaching reading and vocabulary with song and dance. She spends much of her own money to give her students different learning experiences, including a recent activity of watching duck eggs hatch. My son raves about how amazing she is. She makes my son love learning, teaches him to read, and helps him excel in math and science. She helps him grow in his faith, as she teaches religion and also shows them what faith and belief are.[hr]

Dustin Ford

Northside ISD, John Jay High School; 12th Grade

Nominated by Isabel Jewelz Pope (current student)

Mr. Ford is an anatomy and physiology teacher and is an amazing one! He has his daily agendas, which we look forward to everyday. He has made my senior year the most fun and interesting year I have ever had. If we had more teachers that could make us laugh and learn at the same time, school would be less stressful for students like me.[hr]

Dr. Ryan Hamilton

BASIS San Antonio North; 5th Grade Science

Nominated by Pooja Tejwani

Dr. Hamilton has a natural energy to excite students. This is the first year I have seen the spark of learning science in my daughter’s eyes. Dr. Hamilton uses a lot of hands-on strategies to get the kids to learn. He has an awesome online portal where he posts lots of reading material and class notes that are great! He also runs a weather blog, teaches robotics, science UIL, and tennis. His passion for teaching is great![hr]

Angel Hernandez

Northside ISD, Martin Elementary; BMC

Nominated by Amanda Gentis

There is a certain kind of person needed to love on kids with emotional and behavioral challenges. There is a special kind of heart needed to love on kids who think they are unlovable, to advocate for kids who upset the balance in a regular ed class with chair throwing and outbursts, to make everyone she meets feel loved, wanted, and important. There aren’t many teachers who can whisper, “I know you’re feeling frustrated and that’s why you’re acting this way, but I love you anyway,” while a student has a physical temper tantrum. There aren’t many teachers who can calmly tell parents who at their wits’ end, “Your child is special. I know it, and I will show it to everyone.” Angel is that person. No “case” is too big, and no child is too small. Angel works with a special population of children who don’t fit in a mainstream classroom. She makes a spot shaped just for them and loves each student as if he/she were her own. Angel tirelessly advocates, visits student’s homes, gives endless and bottomless hugs to students and parents alike, and draws out the very best in the students. She not only teaches children, but nurtures them and the teachers with whom she works. Angel taught me, as a teacher and colleague, that I am worthy, wanted, needed, and loved. She drew out a compassion and grace in me that I didn’t know existed, and she does the same for countless other teachers and, even more importantly, her students. On hard days, Angel is the first to cheer you on. On good days, she’s the first to celebrate with you. Angel is the first person to arrive on campus every day and the last to leave—not because she’s looking for a high-five, but because she truly believes the work she’s doing is the most important work on earth. There is no accounting for the lives she’s saved, the paths she’s paved, and the hearts she’s healed. Angel goes beyond the basics to truly teach and nurture the whole OR broken child. For that, she is truly an amazing teacher.[hr]

Dr. JennaLynn Styskal-Hunnicutt

BASIS San Antonio; Biology Teacher

Nominated by V. Singh

“A good teacher is like a candle—it consumes itself to light the way for others.” This would aptly describe Dr. Hunnicut. Being a teacher at BASIS San Antonio is no easy feat. They ask a lot of their faculty to appease the voracious appetites of their eager prodigies. Dr. Hunnicut is a favorite amongst the students of the lower and upper schools because she makes biology FUN. She has a palpable enthusiasm and excitement for the subject, which she conveys to her students. She takes the time to foster a love of learning that the future thought leaders of tomorrow will carry with them for a lifetime. Dr. Hunnicut is a dedicated and true teacher. Biology is her passion. She makes the students feel as if they are the most important people and that her purpose in life is to impart knowledge and educate them with everything that she has. Both of my boys have been privileged to be her student and have become better students and human beings because of her. She is literally changing the world, one student at a time. She comes into each and every class beaming and radiating a smile that travels all the way up to her twinkling eyes. My sons are excited and enthusiastic to attend every one of her lectures. They light up when talking about what they learned in her class. Dr. Hunnicut makes each and every lesson and topic memorable and relevant. She has made sure that they have a stable and strong foundation upon which to build their academic careers. She is the perfect representation of an amazing teacher: one who is selfless and in constant pursuit of academic excellence for her students.[hr]

One lucky teacher will be voted to be Alamo City’s Amazing Teacher and will receive a two-night stay and spa package for two at the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort and Spa!

Windflower – The Hill Country Spa offers a fantastic array of services secluded in a setting that captures the charm and allure of a 19th century Texas Hill Country homestead, nestled in a grove of live oaks on the grounds of the resort. The spa’s services include a menu of body scrubs and treatments that truly are good enough to eat, featuring natural ingredients straight from the cupboard. With options like Watermelon-Basil Vodka Scrub, Ruby Red Grapefruit Scrub, Citrus Grass Soothing Scrub, Rasmopolitan Scrub, Honey Lavender Scrub, and more, our teacher will have a hard time choosing which one!

Alamo City’s Amazing Teacher will also receive a complimentary family photo session with the fabulous Amanda Gentis of ARG Photographs!

Her talent is obvious through the beautiful photographs she takes, but what you don’t see is how kind, fun, and wonderful the lady behind the camera is. She makes taking pictures a wonderful experience for all. Amanda’s work is fantastic and she truly captures the beauty in each of her clients, as seen in our Motherhood: More Than Skin Deep series.

Vote for Alamo City’s Amazing Teacher below!

[xyz-ihs snippet=”AmazingTeacherGleam”]