City Year San Antonio | Bridge Builder Awardees

In 2022, City Year, in partnership with Rick Cavender and  Harvey Najim, introduced our annual Bridge Builder Award which is given to one partner teacher at each of City Year San Antonio’s San Antonio Independent School District partner schools. City Year requested that principals nominate a teacher who exemplifies the characteristics of a Bridge Builder.

‘Bridge Building‘ is a powerful metaphor and tool for social change. Seeing and making connections, whether among people or ideas, is a hallmark of bridge builders, whose lives are rooted in values and who dedicate their time and energy to causes larger than themselves.

Bridge builders bring out the best in others by connecting resources and talents to great and worthy causes, especially anticipating the needs of future generations. They use the wisdom and experience they have gleaned for the benefit of others, even those whom they may never meet.

Our programming at our annual Ripple of Hope Gala on May 2, 2024 will include the presentation of the Bridge Builder Award to these incredible teachers who show up for students every day. We look forward to celebrating these remarkable educators with you!

Danielle Salgado

4th/5th Dual Language | Carvajal Elementary

Danielle graduated from UTSA with a B.A. History and her J.D. from Fordham Law School. She is a fourth-generation teacher who has always felt it was her family legacy to end up in a classroom. This is her first year teaching and she’s always enjoyed teaching people about their rights. She gets to see her students learn more about the world around them.

Brittany McNair

6th Grade Science | Davis Middle School (6th)

Brittany graduated from California State University, Fullerton with a B.A. in Psychology with a Minor in Child and Adolescent Development. She has been teaching for 2 years at Davis Middle School. Brittany started working with another AmeriCorps program, Jumpstart, and continued in the program for two years as a Corps member and a Team Leader, serving in preschools. Afterward, she joined City Year LA and was partnered with an amazing Title 1 middle school. This experience pushed her to want to work in her own classroom and nurture her own community of students. She served with Teach For America, helping her become the teacher she is today.

Miguel Hernandez-Saucedo

7th Grade Math | Davis Middle School (7/8th)

Miguel graduated from the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) where he received his B.A. in Education. He has been teaching for 10 years and the last eight years at Davis Middle School. Growing up, his best friend’s parents were teachers and he spent lots of time in their home and, like all their children, he followed in their footsteps. Miguel is the Math Department Chair and a former Teacher of the Month.

Kelly M. O’Connor

9th Grade Biology | Lanier High School

Kelly graduated from UTSA with a B.S. in Elementary Education, and an M.A. in Curriculum & Instruction. She is currently seeking her PhD in Interdisciplinary Learning & Teaching. Kelly has been teaching for 10 years and the last two years at Lanier. She worked as an emergency medical technician in a busy trauma center before she was a teacher. Kelly grew tired of seeing suffering and loss and thought about jobs in vibrant places full of life and where she could still help people and do science, so I studied to become a science teacher. Kelly was Lanier High School Teacher of the Year for 2023-24.

Edna Taylor

4th Grade | Margil Elementary

Edna graduated from Texas A&M, Kingsville with her B.S. and her Masters in Education from Concordia University. Edna has been teaching for 27 years and 16 years at Margil Elementary. She always wanted to be able to educate and make a difference in the lives of young children. She says the most important part of teaching is connecting and getting to know my students. She is a Recognized Teacher with the TEA Teacher Incentive Allotment.

Stevquesha Burts

10th Grade English II | Sam Houston High School

Stevquesha graduated from Texas A&M University-Central Texas with her Masters in Higher Education. She has been teaching for three years, two of them with Sam Houston. In high school, she would always tutor my peers in different subjects and they would say, “You would make a great teacher”. While it was not her first goal, teaching was something she could never escape. While working for Child Protective Services, she would always team up with teachers in the area to make a difference. When she saw the impact that teachers had on student’s success, she knew that she wanted to make a career change. She was named Teacher of the Month in November of 2023.