Zapalac Surprised With State Teaching Award

La Grange Ag teacher Kylee Zapalac has been named a finalist in HEB’s Excellence in Education Contest.

Zapalac was surprised in her classroom Thursday by a host of representatives from HEB, as well as several LGISD administrators. In front of her students she was presented with huge ceremonial check for $1,000 (and the school is also getting $1,000 from HEB) Zapalac was also informed that she is one of 50 finalists from around the state advancing to the next round of competition where she and the school may win $5,000.

“I wasn’t really sure what was going on at first,” said Zapalac. “But when I saw the HEB people come in, it dawned on me. I was overwhelmed, that’s probably why I was crying, but I’m very honored and very excited to continue on in this process.”

Zapalac knew she had been nominatedfortheawardandhad previously been asked to fill out an application, but until Thursday she had no idea HEB’s team of judges had chosen her as a state finalist. La Grange High School principal John Pineda praised Zapalac, who is in her third year at LGISD.

“She’s a great teacher, a great professional,” Pineda said. “She goes above and beyond, not just in the classroom but outside the classroom. She’s a kid-magnet, a great person and we are lucky to have her.”

Zapalac teaches principles of agriculture and floral designs classes and also sponsors numerous extracurricular student ag activities. She is the daughter of Patrick and Callene Zapalac, and a 2017 graduate of Schulenburg High School and 2021 Texas A&M grad.

“I grew up in the ag industry. I have three younger sisters and we all showed ... I wanted to continue in the ag industry, but not necessarily farming or ranching, but teaching kids about how agriculture impacts our everyday lives.

“Being able to teach these kids every day is something I thoroughly enjoy. I love coming to work every single day. There’s something different and new every single day, and the kids make it that much more fun.”

And maybe not surprisingly for a teacher that throws herself into her job so enthusiastically, Zapalac, when asked about what she was going to do with her $1,000 prize money, thought about her students.

“I might use the money for contest materials because we have a lot of contests coming up,” Zapalac said.

Photo by Jeff Wick