2019-2020

2019-2020 Spirit Award Finalists & Recipients

Congratulations to the four recipients of a PSJA Spirit Award! The Spirit of PSJA Awards Recognition Program aims to highlight staff members who go above and beyond representing our district in each of the categories of our district's leadership definition.  

Over 190 award nominations for each of the four categories (Positive Engagement, Student-Centered Excellence, Joint Empowerment, Adaptive Innovation) were submitted throughout the year by campus Principal/Directors.  

From those nominees, a committee comprised of district administrators selected the top four to represent each category as Finalists This was a blind selection with names, locations, and titles redacted to ensure a fair process.  

Today we held a special Spirit Awards Virtual Celebration to honor these finalists and announce top recipients in each category.

Congratulations to the 2019-2020 Spirit of PSJA Award Districtwide Finalists & Recipients:  

Positive Engagement
Robert Sandoval, Teacher, Ford Elementary (Top Spirit Award Recipient) Juan Valdez, Teacher, Palacios Elementary Juanita Mercado, Parent Educator, Anaya Elementary Claudia Alvarado, Instructional Specialist, Early Childhood Department  

Student-Centered Excellence
Rene Trevino, Teacher, Clover Elementary (Top Spirit Award Recipient) Alva Diaz, Teacher, Pathways Towards Independence Program Amy Benitez, Librarian, Garza Elementary Loretta Sanchez, Counselor, Dr. Long Elementary  

Joint Empowerment
Stephanie King, Coach, PSJA PTI (Top Award Recipient) Sandra Bermea-Lujan, Teacher, Doedyns Elementary Karrianne Contreras, College Transition Dept. Rene Hernandez, Coach, Guerra Elementary  

Adaptive Innovation
Memo Cienfuegos, CIT, PSJA North ECHS (Top Award Recipient) Imelda Palacios, Director, Child Nutrition Department Lexi Esparza, Teacher, Yzaguirre Middle School Jeanette Rodriguez, Teacher, Palacios Elementary