Jacksonville ISD celebrates upcoming school year with classroom grants

JACKSONVILLE, Texas (KLTV) - The first day of school is around the corner for some East Texas school districts, and they are getting their faculty excited for the new school year.

Jacksonville ISD faculty and staff had their first gathering of the school year Monday afternoon at the John Alexander Gym.

Middle school teacher Tiffanie Horn has been teaching for six years at the district and said they have done a great job of getting everyone together to get things kicked off for the 2023-2024 school year.

“It just really lets us know our job is to come here, teach these kids and that’s what we’re here for,” Horn said.

This year’s guest speaker was Dr. John Hodge. Hodge is the president and co-founder of Urban Learning and Leadership Center. He shared a few words with the teachers in attendance.

“No significant learning takes place without a significant relationship,” Hodge said during his speech.

Selected teachers were awarded a classroom grant totaling $40,000 from the Jacksonville Education Foundation.

Horn teaches 8th grade English and said the money covered class costs accrued at a New York City institute.

“To know that our district and our community supported our journey means the world to us,” Horn said.

Horn’s colleague Jenna Jaramillo, who also teaches 8th grade English, said they’re excited to share what they learned.

“We’ll be able to hand these over to our new teachers and get the ball rolling for these kiddos this year,” Jaramillo said.

The first day of class for Jacksonville ISD is Aug. 15.

Copyright 2023 KLTV. All rights reserved.