2020 State Conference
Theme: Todos Unidos - Education for All NM
Find below the winners and national qualifiers of the
2020 EdRising NM State Conference held in February 2020
in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The 1st-5th place is awarded to young competitors across the state who successfully demonstrate education career skillsets to a panel of judges from the field.
This year, 1st and 2nd placements were sponsored to attend the Educators Rising National Conference by EdRising NM, but due to Covid-19 and the nationwide lockdown, the event did not commence.
Keynote Speakers
This year, we had three keynote guest speakers with breakout sessions and opening or closing sessions to discuss their challenges and successes as educators. Their information can be found below.
José Gonzalez
Educator
José Gonzalez is in his twenty-eighth year of teaching and currently works for Tucson Unified School District teaching the Culturally Relevant (CR) American History: Mexican American Perspective and CR American Government Social Justice Perspectives classes at Tucson High Magnet School. As a practitioner and a student advocate, José anchors his instruction by implementing a Xicanx Critical Race Theory, simultaneously interweaving a humanizing pedagogy, which at its core is grounded in an indigenous epistemology. He operationalizes this indigenous epistemology to foster and facilitate within his student’s a strong sense of identity (ancestral and academic) and student's voice infusing a self-discipline approach to life. José received his bachelor’s from Emporia State University; a master’s from Northern Arizona University and is currently pursuing his doctorate in Educational Policy Studies and Practice at the University of Arizona.
Mandi Torrez
2020 NM Teacher of the Year
Mandi Torrez is the 2020 New Mexico Teacher of the Year. She has been teaching for ten years, eight of which have been at Placitas Elementary School. Ms. Torrez is a member of the National Council for Teachers of Mathematics and the National Education Association. She has served on the Placitas Elementary Leadership Team since 2017, and was nominated for the Golden Apple Excellence in Teaching Award in 2017. Her first work with children was in college, while volunteering at an English as Second Language after-school program in a low-income housing community. Ms. Torrez’s volunteer service was her first look at the achievement gap and the support needed for minority students. A central component of Ms. Torrez’s teaching is her focus on cultural diversity. She has worked to highlight cultural awareness at Placitas Elementary by organizing annual celebrations for National Hispanic Heritage Month, Native American Heritage Month and National Black History Month. Prior to teaching, Ms. Torrez was a journalist for eight years. She attended the University of Colorado at Boulder, where she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism. Ms. Torrez also attended Wheelock College in Boston, MA, where she received a Master of Science degree in Integrated Elementary Education and Special Education.
Individual Competitions
Children's Literature K-3
1st Place: Rio Rancho High School Ruby Sechrest 2nd Place Tie: Eldorado High School Cierra Sanzari & Lindsey Clark 2nd Place Tie: Los Lunas High School Jubilee Foreman 3rd Place: Aztec High School Elizabeth Montoya & Morgan Holbert 4th Place: Newcomb High School Natalie Peterson 5th Place: Portales High School Jaden Davis-Lay & Julian Valero
Children's Literature K-3
Spanish
1st Place: Hatch Valley High School Juanita Gomez & Evelyn Moreno 2nd Place: Deming High School Irvin Moreno & Orlando Galindo 3rd Place Tie: Gadsden High School Clarissa Araiza & Aidee Najera 3rd Place Tie: Atrisco Heritage High School Mario Pimentel 4th Place: Santa Teresa High School Daphne Duenas & Audrey Anchondo 5th Place: Deming High School Alexa Gonzalez & Diego Cardoza
Job Interview
1st Place Tie: Del Norte High School Jasmine Tata 1st Place Tie: Manzano High School Samantha Gamboa 2nd Place Tie: Roswell Early College HS Jacob Garcia 2nd Place Tie: Lovington High School Marla Naegele 3rd Place Tie: Roswell Early College HS Mikel Pannell 3rd Place Tie: Portales High School Amber Washburn 4th Place: V. Sue Cleveland High School Dayree Ramirez 5th Place: V. Sue Cleveland High School Nathaniel Shinners
EdRising Moment
1st Place Tie: Rio Rancho High School Vanessa Flores 1st Place Tie: Manzano High School Lona Benavidez 2nd Place: Manzano High School Hannah Withrow 3rd Place: Hatch Valley High School Sylvia Porras 4th Place Tie: Atrisco Heritage High School Sonia Garcia 4th Place Tie: Rio Rancho High School Brianna Barraza 5th Place: Atrisco Heritage High School Brianna Salas
Lesson Planning & Delivery
All Categories
1st Place: Portales High School Joseph Stroud 2nd Place: Rio Rancho High School Amoreena LaCour 3rd Place: Santa Teresa High School Daphne Duenas 4th Place: Rio Rancho High School Madison Hyska 5th Place: V. Sue Cleveland High School Analyssa Shainin
Impromptu Speaking
1st Place: Eldorado High School Joshua Burns 2nd Place: Santa Teresa High School Juan Ricarte 3rd Place: Manzano High School Sarah Ferrari 4th Place: Portales High School Kersity Laman 5th Place: Laguna Acoma High School Cyrus Gutierrez
Children's Literature Pre-K
1st Place: Portales High School Ezmeralda Garza & Stephanie Ochoa 2nd Place: Newcomb High School Ciraeya Russell 3rd Place: Eldorado High School Destiny Jackson & Keyon Johnson 4th Place: Carlsbad High School Chey Ann Rivas 5th Place: Santa Teresa High School Luisa Andazola & Jocelyn Arzola
Children's Literature Pre-K
Spanish
1st Place: Gadsden High School Darleen Anchondo* 2nd Place Tie: Hatch Valley High School Johana Paizano & Anette Olvera 2nd Place Tie: Hobbs High School Ana Morales & Azeneth Balderama 3rd Place: Santa Teresa High School Evelyn Arzola 4th Place: Deming High School Kimberly Lopez & Heidi Fernandez
Creative Lecture
1st Place: Rio Rancho High School Olivia Daniels 2nd Place: Rio Rancho High School Brenee Thornburgh 3rd Place: Las Cruces High School Ashley Arbogast 4th Place: V. Sue Cleveland High School Grayce Miller 5th Place: Los Lunas High School Desiree Pairett
Exploring Education Careers
All Categories
1st Place: Santa Teresa High School Aileen Cortez 2nd Place: Santa Teresa High School Frida Estrada 3rd Place: Eldorado High School Aimee Sanchez 4th Place: Portales High School Atiana Tapia 5th Place: Manzano High School Isabella Munoz
Public Speaking
1st Place: Aztec High School Bailey Kelly 2nd Place: Del Norte High School Amy Lee 3rd Place: V. Sue Cleveland High School Alexis Bonbrake 4th Place: Portales High School Mia Molina 5th Place: Santa Teresa High School Christopher Gonzalez
Team Competitions and Contests
Ethical Dilemma
1st Place: Rio Rancho High School Ashton Galameu, Mystique Cadena, Victoria Voccio & Den'nika Woods 2nd Place: Manzano High School Riella Fanning, Carmel Kumi, Kaelin Shook & Jordan Lane
Teacher Recruitment PSA
State-Specific Rubric
1st Place Tie: #Teach2Create by Joshua Burns, Kayla Martinez & Delanie Morales, Eldorado HS 1st Place Tie: Will you step up? by Gentry Boring, Onoselume Idiake, Shelby Moore & Alyssa Gonzales, Rio Rancho HS 2nd Place: Teacher PSA by Perla Arroyo & Marla Naegele, Lovington HS
Research Learning Challenges
1st Place Tie: Newcomb High School Alyzaria Curley, Jessy Manygoats, Alyssa Begay & Renee Nahkai 1st Place Tie: V. Sue Cleveland High School Bianca Lambson & Audrey Stubbs* 2nd Place: Santa Teresa High School Evelyn Arzola, Aileen Cortez, Julia Gonzalez & Juan Ricarte 3rd Place: Chaparral High School Linely Corral & Emmanuel Garcia 4th Place: Laguna Acoma High School Logan Aragon & Sidney Cheromiah
Inside Our Schools
1st Place: Chaparral HS, Alejandro Rodriguez & Daphne Bustillos 2nd Place: John Baker Elementary School: Best Buddy Program by Lorie Newman, Emylia Acabal & Kiera Montoya, Eldorado HS