Rudy Galvez wins ExCEL Award for Alamo Heights Independent School District Rudy Galvez is the Spanish Immersion Social Studies teacher at
Alamo Heights Jr. High. The path to becoming a teacher was not an easy one for him.
While his students are learning both history and a foreign language in his immersion class, Mr. Galvez also wants them to understand the importance of an education and service to others. Galvez joined the military to pay for his college, serving in Desert Storm. He is now pursuing his education further, earning a Masters of Education in Administration from UTSA. Galvez hopes to one day serve as a school principal. His life is an inspiring lesson to his students. "It's really great that he's been doing things for everybody else his entire life," said eighth grader Benjamin Kurzean. "I think the best leaders lead through serving others," said Galvez. That is something he teaches by example every single day. "He really cares and he can tell if you're having trouble and he'll sit you down and ask what's going on in your life and he really helps you," said eighth grader Katie White.
He was raised by a single working mother.
"My mom had a third grade education and I was the youngest of six kids so I kind of had a tough time growing up and one of my escapes was school. I was blessed with really great teachers and that is why I wanted to be a teacher myself," he said.
