Over the weekend, twelve Houston-area school teachers received the prestigious Kinder Excellence in Teaching Award (KETA) and a gift of $25,000 each in recognition of their outstanding work as educators.
Teachers from KIPP Texas Public Schools – Houston, YES Prep Public Schools, Teach for America Houston and Catholic Schools of the Archdiocese of Galveston – Houston were inducted into the KETA Hall of Fame alongside more than 250 other area educators. To date, Kinder Foundation has gifted over $3.7 million in grants since the program was established in 2001.
During the celebratory evening, 2019 recipient Greg Adragna, 11th grade physics teacher at Cristo Rey Jesuit College Preparatory School of Houston, thanked the Kinders on behalf of all 2019 winners, commenting the award highlights the accomplishments of individuals working in education and reinforces the important relationship between educational opportunity and a healthy, dynamic society.
Additionally, past KETA winners Chassidi Younger, Earin Fritz, and Fabeah Adu-Oppong each spoke to the impact the grants have had on their lives. Younger used the funds to buy a safer vehicle to commute to and from the medical center to visit her newborn who has been in the NICU for the past six months. Fritz bought a home, and Adu-Oppong extended generosity to her family and jumpstarted her savings.