Congratulations to
National Teaching Award Nominee
Benjamin Melendez
IDEA Riverview College Prep, Brownsville, Texas
Student Nomination Story
Benjamin Melendez is currently my AP English Language and Literature teacher. Mr. Melendez has been a phenomenal teacher to me and to all students and has made a huge impact in my life even if its in a minimal way. During this 2021-2022 school year things have been difficult for me , especially with the health of my mother which had become an issue for my school work. It was also during this time that Mr. Melendez had left for his paternity leave , leaving us with sub to take over class. This however didn't stop him from making sure we were successful and prepared for his AP mock exam. Personally I didn't return to school ideally as the rest of the student body, because my mother was going through pretty difficult moments with her health leading up to me not coming back from winter break and returning a month later. Even though I was back , my teacher wasn't ,he was still on leave. My journey back to school and adjusting with my assignments and all task, was a smooth ride especially when Mr. Melendez came back and continued teaching us. However, his mock soon approached and me not having my mental health stable enough to focus on a long exam was what led me to fail his exam. The day that made me realize that Mr. Melendez was the teacher that I could fully trust and was the teacher that I knew would continue pushing me forward to strive for excellence came. I asked him for my grade and he was bluntly honest with me which was truly the best thing that could've happened to me that day. We had the conversation that I wasn't prepared to have with any teacher , reason being that he was flabbergasted as to why my score was tremendously low. Eventually , I told him why, and he heard me out, gave me support, and became a trustable person to me , especially because trust for me is a touchy topic, but he gained my trust. From then on , school became easier and my grades improved for his class because he is a heavy grader and his class is hard, and since he knew my situation , he would help me out as much as I could and asked if I wanted to go to his tutoring. Furthermore, as time went on and I became readjusted to my school routine, I had to keep on going and apply to my summer programs and as a trusted teacher I asked him to write my Letter of Recommendation for my Quest Bridge application and as I continued the application process he was always there encouraging me to not give up even when I felt at my lowest and like giving up. As I completed my application and the announcement from administrators from Quest Bridge came back , I found out that I was denied acceptance. I was completely devastated at my denial from the program but Mr.Melendez kept pushing me too see on the bright side and was there for me. All in all Mr.Melendez has changed my life because he showed me what it was to have a teacher who I could trust and have an encouraging, straight forward, and he showed me that as a person I do matter , he is funny , sarcastic, smart, open to new possibilities, and one of the best teachers I’ve had in fact he has inspired my minor if I were to get one because he has made me have and interest in English. He had made the biggest change in my life and he is an amazing teacher who has suffered a lot but makes the most out of each day .
Zaydali Rios
To see more exceptional teacher nominees, visit The Honor Roll.