EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – The Education Service Center Region 19 (ESC19) announced the teachers of the year winners during an awards celebration and banquet held Saturday, Aug. 10 at the Starlight Event Center.
Dora Esquivel, teacher at Coach Archie Duran Elementary School in the El Paso Independent School District (EPISD), has been named 2025 ESC19 Elementary Teacher of the Year.
Photos courtesy of ESC19
Christopher J. Martin, teacher at Col John O. Ensor Middle School in the Socorro Independent School District (SISD), has been named 2025 ESC19 Secondary Teacher of the Year.
Photos courtesy of ESC19
Twenty-three area district and charter schoolteachers of the year competed in a “rigorous process” for the honor of representing the region at the state level, according to a press release sent by ESC19.
Photo courtesy of ESC19
First, they were selected as campus Teachers of the Year, then chosen to represent their respective districts, and on Aug. 10 they competed for the title of Regional Teacher of the Year.
As part of the competition, each teacher underwent panel interviews and submitted multiple essays detailing their teaching philosophies and achievements, according to ESC19.
ESC 19 said the first-place winners will go on to compete for the Texas Teacher of the Year, with the announcement expected later this year.
So far, ESC19 has had had nine state winners from the region who have gone on to compete at the national level.
Raiz Federal Credit Union co-sponsored the event and awarded cash prizes to the top three teachers in both the elementary and secondary school categories, according to ESC19.
In addition, this year also marks a special milestone as ESC19 celebrates its 25th anniversary of “honoring area schoolteachers with this awards celebration, recognizing the outstanding positive impacts that educators have on our community,” according to ESC19.
Region 19 Elementary Teacher of the Year Top Winners:
First place: Dora Esquivel, El Paso ISD
Second place: Marisol Venegas, Clint ISD
Third place: Santiago Chavez, Fabens ISD
Region 19 Secondary Teacher of the Year Top Winners:
First place: Christopher J. Martin, Socorro ISD
Second place: Hiram Espinosa, Anthony ISD
Third place: Lauren Franzoy, Ft. Hancock ISD
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