Ms. Ana Gonzalez-Willis. Mr. John Flores. 

Mrs. Diane Hernandez. Mrs. Arlene Wade-Peña. 

These are the names of four heroes in our community. 

And this past Friday, we celebrated them for their outstanding commitment to their students and our community. 

At a time when teachers are leaving the profession due to low pay, few job benefits, heavy workloads, and other factors, it is important we recognize the critical work they do and that they know we appreciate them. 

That has always been the goal of our CPLC Esperanza Teacher Awards: to thank the teachers who are making a difference in our community. 

And the teachers we recognized are remarkable beyond words. 

Mrs. Arlene Wade-Peña battled cancer in college while raising two children as a single mother. And after she started teaching at Elvira Elementary School, she slowly helped transform the school from a “D” rating to an “A” rating. 

Mrs. Diane Hernandez also received a cancer diagnosis—but that didn’t limit her, either. By day, she would show up for her students in the classroom, and by night, she would show up at the clinic for her cancer treatments. During what for others would have been their darkest times, her unwavering determination and undiminished light inspired her students, colleagues, and the entire school community. 

Mr. John Flores is another teacher who can’t say no to his students. So when he found out his former VFX Robotics team members—now students at the local high school—were suddenly without a coach for their competition, Mr. Flores quickly decided to give up his Spring Break to be there for them. And in honor of the struggles he went through after losing his mom as a high school student, he and his wife established the Grumski-Flores scholarship for aspiring college students who have lost a parent. 

And can you imagine having a teacher like Mrs. Ana Gonzalez-Willis? She teaches Special Education at Webster Elementary School, where she builds bridges between her students with autism and the rest of the school so they can better understand autism and create a more inclusive and welcoming environment. 

But her impact is not limited to her school—last summer, she visited a rural school in the Dominican Republic to share all the knowledge and wisdom she’s learned about working with children with autism in order to help this school build their own curriculum. And today, the Dominican Consejo Nacional de la Discapacidad (CONADIS) has adopted the learning model she co-created and is working to implement it at other schools throughout the country. 

For a student walking into any of these teacher’s classrooms, this may be the first time they see someone who looks like them as a role model or a mentor in a position of power. 

And for their Spanish-speaking parent, it might be the first time they get a chance to fully understand how their child is doing in school and how they can best support them. 

Congratulations to our 2025 CPLC Esperanza Teacher Award honorees! 

Thank you so much to our presenting sponsor, the Salt River Project (SRP). I’d also like to thank our Platinum Sponsors, HUB, Southwest Airlines and our Alma Sponsor, Swire Coca-Cola. We could not have celebrated these heroes from our community without your support. 

Let’s continue promoting the critical and transformative work of teachers! 

Gracias,