CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — William Adams Middle School's 7th grade art teacher, Samantha Srp, received some extra guests in her classroom as she was named as a finalist for the H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards on Monday.
The awards recognizes great educators across Texas. Finalists like Srp receive a $1,000 for themselves and an additional $1,000 for their schools.
3NEWS caught up with Samantha after the shock had worn off.
"I go back to when I was my students age in junior high," Srp said. "I had a teacher that just really influenced me on, it wasn't only the subject matter, it was what you could do with it and I learned so much through that, that I wanted to give back."
The Alice ISD teacher's next step is to compete statewide against four other teachers in her category.
If she wins, she'll get to take home $10,000 and her school gets another $10,000.
Everyone at 3NEWS wishes her the very best of luck.
More from 3News on KIIITV.com:
- Missing Corpus Christi woman; reported found Friday evening
- Staying safe behind the wheel and steering clear of road rage
- More than 20 Aquarium turtles on path to recovery following January cold front
- Alice ends Stage Two water restrictions Monday
- What has all these wing restaurants flying to Corpus Christi?
- Beach permits for 2024 are now available for purchase
- The 'Dr. Hector P. Garcia Papers' at TAMU-CC, additional archives help keep his memory alive
Subscribe to our YouTube channel for your daily news and exclusive extended interviews.
Do you have a news tip? Tell 3!
Email tell3@kiiitv.com so we can get in touch with you about your story should we have questions or need more information. We realize some stories are sensitive in nature. Let us know if you'd like to remain anonymous.