Bilingual Teams

Snyder ISD fifth-grade teacher Katherine McCurdy was one of 99 reading teachers selected during the summer of 2017 to participate in the inaugural State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) Teacher Institute, a week-long retreat in which teachers from across Texas came together to develop interim and formative assessment items that align to STAAR assessments. 

The goal of the STAAR Teacher Institutes is to improve instruction by training teachers on assessment practices and investing in teachers so they are empowered to lead by example while building more transparency in the assessment process. McCurdy, a 14-year teaching veteran, was chosen to participate because of her years of experience working on campus leadership teams, creating local curriculum and assessments aligned to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) and teaching Response to Intervention (RTI) reading classes.  

“Two years ago, I saw the tremendous need for gifted identification in underrepresented populations and came to Snyder,” said McCurdy, who holds a master’s degree in gifted education. “Working with our fifth-grade bilingual team hand in hand, we serve the community to the best of our abilities incorporating a beautiful medley of culture, respect for diversity and a lifetime love for learning.”

That lifetime love of learning is what drew McCurdy to participate in the STAAR Teacher Institute. “Education is a vocation,” she said. “Like the farmer learning new ways to produce better crops, I constantly am looking for opportunities to better serve all my students and ensure that I am doing everything I can to help them succeed.” #IAmTXEd   SnyderISD