In the past when students were impressed with their teacher, they would bring her a shiny red apple. A teacher at Coronado Middle and High School left such an impression on her students and peers that she will be receiving a golden apple in April.
Crystal Gallegos was one of six teachers statewide to win the Golden Apple Award out of a pool of 80 nominees. The award is presented annually by the Golden Apple Foundation to teachers who show excellence in their field.
The last Rio Arriba County teacher to win it was Española Valley High School English teacher Maria Reickenberg in 2005.
Gallegos currently teaches technology and English classes at the small Rio Arriba secondary school. She is the first teacher from the Jemez Mountains School District to be selected for the award and the only teacher this year from the County.
“It’s not just an award to put on your mantle,” Golden Apple Development Director Cara Youngblood said. “We give them a $1,500 stipend and they also get funding towards the professional development plan of their choice.”
Teaching runs in the Gallina native’s blood. Her mother, father and sister share the same profession. Her parents are retired now, but her mother and father taught home economic and business, respectively, when Gallegos was in the District.
Her parents instilled in her and her sister a love of reading. Today she tells her students that reading is a cheap and easy way to take a vacation.
“I remember growing up, I would take stacks and stacks of magazines to bed,” Gallegos said.
A graduate of the University of New Mexico in 2002, Gallegos dabbled in pre-medicine, nutrition and computer science before choosing education as a major. She went straight home to teach after graduation and began teaching in the District in 2003. Gallegos focused her graduate studies on teaching and technology at Lesley University, an online college, and earned her master’s degree in 2005.
Gallegos’ love and use of technology are what got her noticed by the Foundation. In her technology class, she divided the class and instructed them to make a film. It is up to the students to create everything else from the script to the filming and production.
Gallgeos took advantage of a grant from the Microsoft Corporation to buy cameras, lighting equipment and training on how to make films. Once the students come up with their plan, Gallegos will guide them in making the film.
“She’s a very hands on teacher,” ninth-grader Perry Shaffar said. “None of her lessons are boring. She leaves our projects open but sets the guideline.”
Shaffar said his group is making a comedy/thriller much like Scooby Doo. Through Gallegos, he is also learning how to program X-Box video games and, as a freshman, earning college credit from Northern New Mexico College. The high school and the college partnered for a dual credit program.
Youngblood said the award recipients are chosen not only on their ability to guide their students, but on how they help their fellow teachers. Frank Chacon teaches math and history at Coronado. He said Gallegos has taught him how to encourage his students to use Power Point presentations when doing projects. Chacon said she encouraged him to buy an iPod Touch that he proudly carries and shows off to fellow staff.
“Seeing her desire and her motivation in making a difference in her kid’s life, I have been impacted by her as well,” Chacon said. “Everybody sees her as a tremendous resource and she never hesitates to help.”
Gallegos has no doubt that she chose the right profession. If it was up to her, she said she would stay a teacher at the same school until she retires.
“You need to find a job where you look forward to Mondays not Fridays,” she said. “That’s the best advice I’ve ever gotten.”