New Mexico 2022 Teacher of the Year Lorynn Guerrero
NMPED News:
…Las Cruces educator will represent state in national competition
LAS CRUCES – New Mexico Public Education Department (NMPED) Secretary Kurt Steinhaus today announced the selection of Las Cruces educator Lorynn Guerrero as New Mexico Teacher of the Year 2022.
Guerrero teaches English Language Arts at New America School-Las Cruces, a charter high school where she also established a program for teen parents that now includes an on-campus, licensed child-care center.
“Ms. Guerrero’s efforts on behalf of her teenage students in Las Cruces have been nothing short of extraordinary,” Secretary Steinhaus said. “New Mexico is fortunate to have her as our 2022 spokesperson for the teaching profession and our representative in the National Teacher of the Year competition. Her dedication and high standards will serve as a model to all of us in the coming year.”
Secretary Steinhaus presented the award at a ceremony Friday afternoon in the gymnasium at New America School-Las Cruces, a state-chartered school with 257 enrolled students, 98 percent of whom are economically disadvantaged.
“It’s kind of unbelievable to see that I’m the recipient of the New Mexico 2022 Teacher of the Year because I think all the teachers in New Mexico do an excellent job, so I’m very honored to be chosen,” Guerrero said after learning of her selection.
The New Mexico Oil and Gas Association is the title sponsor for the New Mexico Teacher of the Year program for the fourth year and will contribute up to $25,000 worth of support and professional development opportunities to the winner.
“We are incredibly grateful for the continued support of the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association for the New Mexico Teacher of the Year,” Steinhaus said. “Their support makes this more than a title but a real opportunity for the winner to grow in her profession and bring those enhanced skills back to her school, her community and her state.”
Guerrero, who grew up in Las Cruces, began her teaching career in 2006 in Hatch, where she taught both middle and high school students. She joined Las Cruces Public Schools in 2012, first teaching at Organ Mountain High and now at New America School-Las Cruces.
Her father was an educator, and Guerrero always intended to follow him into the profession but worried that dream would be derailed when she became a mother at age 17. The Graduation Reality and Dual Skills program at her high school kept her on course and motivated her to bring the GRADS program to New America School-Las Cruces in 2020. The associated child-care center opened in August with its first client, a 2-month-old infant.
“Ms. Guerrero is an outstanding teacher,” wrote Margarita Leza Porter, the school’s superintendent and principal in her nomination letter. “Her increased level of rigor, the setting of high expectations, and continual reflection on her teaching sets her apart from other educators.”
In addition to teaching, Guerrero is working on her master’s degree in educational administration, which she expects to complete in May 2022. Her bachelor’s degree in secondary education is from New Mexico State University. She has a Teacher of English as a Second Language endorsement from Eastern New Mexico and an advanced placement certification in literature and composition from New Mexico Highlands University.
Guerrero uses her 12th grade English classes to help students prepare for college or career.
“I reiterate that as their teacher, I’m going to help them be prepared for anything they choose,” Guerrera wrote in her application. “I tell them it’s their choice if they want to attend college after high school, but I have them fill out applications to our local community college and to access a scholarship portal.
“My main goal for them is to be able to support themselves and their future families with a career they love. It doesn’t have to be college-geared, but any job takes additional education and training,” Guerrera wrote.
The New Mexico Teacher of the Year award was established in 1963. Each year, all New Mexico school districts and charter schools are invited to nominate an outstanding teacher to become New Mexico’s Teacher of the Year and to represent New Mexico in the National Teacher of the Year competition. New Mexico’s Teacher of the Year also acts as the spokesperson for the state’s teaching profession.
The New Mexico Teacher of the Year program incorporates the New Mexico Public Education Department’s vision of a world-class educational system in which all New Mexico students are prepared to succeed in a diverse, and increasingly complex, world.
