Memorial-Area Teachers
Win 2008 Crystal Awards

Patty Nilsson	Anne-Marie Zehawi

 Two Memorial-area teachers will be honored as Crystal Award winners at the Spring Branch Education Foundation-sponsored Crystal Award Gala later this month. Patty Nilsson, who teaches digital film and video journalism at The Guthrie Center, and Anne-Marie Zehawi, who teaches math and French at The Regis School of the Sacred Heart, will receive awards.
            The Crystal Award recognizes teachers who make a difference for students.
            The Crystal Awards Celebration, which began in 1993, will honor six regional educators as “Outstanding Teacher” during a gala celebration that begins at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 29, at the Westin Oaks Hotel. Winners were selected from more than 1,600 nominations filed by private and public school districts in Harris and seven other Gulf Coast counties.
            Nilsson, a University of Houston graduate, has taught more than 10 years in Spring Branch ISD. A co-leader in the award-winning digital film department located at The Guthrie Center, Nilsson has won numerous awards, including SBISD Secondary Teacher of the Year, West Houston Chamber of Commerce Teacher of the Year, and district Career & Technology Teacher of the Year.
            She has also earned the Christa McAuliffe Exemplary Teacher and Elizabeth Brand Teacher Excellence recognitions. For the past five years, she has been named an Apple Distinguished Educator.
            Nilsson teaches classes for dual credit through the Houston Community College System and many of her students have earned scholarships through annual competitions, such as the Culture Shapers program competition. For the past six years, she has taken a student team to the Sundance Film Festival, held each winter in Park City, Utah.
            Active in district and community affairs, she is also the executive director and a founder of Island Films and the Island Film Festival, a nonprofit group dedicated to promoting the works of young filmmakers and digital media artists.            
            Anne-Marie Zehawi has taught math, algebra 1 and French at The Regis School of the Sacred Heart for the past 13 years. Originally from Soissons, France, 60 miles from Paris, she taught in England and Libya prior to moving to the United States. Her family lived in Florida and Wyoming before settling in Houston.
            Zehawi sponsors two math clubs for seventh and eighth graders and offers tutorials on non-club days. She prepares and facilitates teams for math and academic competitions.
            Asked about receiving the award, Zehawi says, “I was in shock. It was all done behind my back, so I knew nothing! It was announced at assembly, which was also my birthday. I was so surprised I couldn’t talk or cry. My sons are coming from Seattle, San Diego and New York to attend the Gala with my husband and me. I’m just delighted!”
            Other Crystal Award winners this year are Dr. Ollie Davis of Houston ISD, Donna Stone and Kathalene Jernigan of Clear Creek ISD, and Jane Lamb of Klein ISD.
            Patty and Bruce Busmire, co-chairs of the 2008 Crystal Award Gala, “An Evening to Honor Teachers, Our Gulf Coast Gems,” encourages community participation. “This is a wonderful opportunity for parents and community members to come together to honor the incredible men and women who teach our children,” says Patty Busmire.

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