Rebecca Russell never thought she would be named Mount Vernon ISD Secondary Teacher of the Year, even after 18 years in education.
In fact, she almost didn’t apply.
As the application deadline got closer, Russell remembered trying before and not being chosen. She almost skipped applying this time, but on the last day, she filled out the paperwork and turned it in.
“I wanted it, but I didn’t really expect it,” she said. “There were several other people who applied who were very deserving.”
When she found out she had been chosen, she was truly surprised. The award meant even more because it came from her students, as well as colleagues and leaders throughout the district.
“I’ve always had students who believed in me and needed me,” Russell said. “I know I’m a good teacher, but I’ve never really had that recognition from the whole district before. It was definitely an honor.”
Teaching wasn’t something Russell stumbled into. She knew from a young age that it was what she wanted to do.
“I’ve wanted to be a teacher since first or second grade,” she said. “Honestly, I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything different.”
Over the years, her job has changed. Now, she helps students in many ways, managing special education, Section 504, and emergent bilingual programs, and offering inclusion support. Much of her work is behind the scenes, making sure students get the help they need. Even though her duties have shifted, her motivation is still the same.
“My favorite thing is just how much I can be there for kids,” Russell said. “Whether it’s academically, socially, emotionally, whatever the case may be, I want them to know I’m available.”
Russell’s commitment to her students goes beyond academics. She believes it’s important for teachers to give students a safe place where they feel seen, valued, and supported. She remembered one student who started at Mount Vernon High School as a freshman facing many personal challenges. One day, Russell checked in on her and told her she could always come talk if she needed someone.
Over the next few years, that invitation turned into a strong relationship. The student left for homeschooling for a while, but later returned and became one of what Russell fondly calls her “Velcro children.”
“Anytime she saw me, she’d ask if she could come into my office,” Russell said. “Sometimes we’d just talk. Sometimes she’d work while I worked. She knew she always had a place she could go.”
At the end of her senior year, the student wrote Russell a letter about how much those talks had meant to her. For Russell, moments like this remind her why she became a teacher.
“Being a safe place for kids is really my biggest thing,” she said.
In almost twenty years of teaching, Russell has seen a lot change in the classroom. Academic standards are higher, and students deal with pressures that earlier generations didn’t face so young. Still, Russell believes the best way to help is to focus on each student as an individual.
“There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach,” she said. “Every student is different. Every year is different.”
For her, this means seeing students as people first. If a student is having a hard time, Russell thinks it’s just as important to understand why as it is to look at their grades or test scores.
“The kids need somebody who cares about them,” she said. “I want them to know I see them as a person before they’re a score or a number.”
The connections she makes with students often last long after they graduate. Many former students still ask her for advice about money, careers, or everyday life. Recently, one reached out for help getting a loan, remembering what he learned in her financial math class.
For Russell, those moments are every bit as rewarding as receiving Teacher of the Year honors.
“If there’s one thing I hope students remember, it’s that they can always find me,” she said. “If they need somebody they can count on, I hope they know they can reach out.”
Russell grew up in Stephenville, almost four hours away, but Mount Vernon now feels like home. She and her family live in the district, her daughters go to Mount Vernon schools, and she says the community welcomed her from the start.
“It’s just welcoming,” she said. “It’s a good district, and it’s where I want my girls to grow up.”
For almost 20 years, Russell has helped students with both their education and the ups and downs of growing up. Whether it’s a quick chat in the hallway, advice during tough times, or just having her office door open, she’s known as someone students can count on. By naming her Secondary Teacher of the Year, Mount Vernon ISD has officially recognized what many students have known for a long time: behind every lesson and kind word is a teacher who always puts her students first.
