A FMS Teacher Sows The Future Seeds

Choose a career you enjoy doing, and you won’t have to work a day in your life, according to a quotation attributed to Mark Twain. Few people are lucky enough to discover a profession that combines achievement and fulfillment.

Horacio Villegas, a teacher at Fredericksburg Middle School, believes that education is more of a calling than a career. Villegas, however, did not initially consider a future in education.

Villegas was born in Zacatecas, a state in Mexico. Villegas’ family moved to the United States while he was still a baby, selling land in Mexico and settling close to Blanco. Villegas enrolled and finished his studies at UTSA in San Antonio after finishing high school.

Villegas stated regarding his professional aspirations, “I wanted to work in radio and do other things.” “After graduating from college, I started working for the government.”

He worked in immigration for a few years in Illinois, but he disliked the state’s extreme cold and never felt particularly engaged by his profession. While doing it, it was enjoyable, but Villegas could tell it wasn’t particularly rewarding on other levels. The teaching profession arrived at his door in 2005.

Right at the start of the summer program, one of my previous professors contacted me and asked, “Hey, would you be willing to help us out with the summer program?” Villegas stated. While he had never taught or worked with children, he offered to assist.

She asked me how I enjoyed it after the first week of summer camp in Blanco, according to Villegas. “I can’t believe people are paid to do this,” I exclaimed.

Soon later, Villegas had an interview for a post at the Blanco middle school. Before he left the school’s parking lot, much to his surprise, he got a call from the principal with a job offer. After the Christmas break, he accepted the position and started teaching in the middle of the school year. Recently news surfaced about North Texas Lawyers Respond To Trump Arraignment click here to read.

After working as an assistant for a while, Villegas says, “I returned and completed an alternative certification program in 2008 to become a multilingual generalist.” I spent some time working in Schertz and Blanco after that, primarily at the middle school level.

Villegas arrived in the Fredericksburg Public School District in 2022 and continued to do the work that felt right to him.

Villegas declared that this was his first year. “I first began in August. That has been my view since since I worked at the summer camp: “I don’t think people are paid to do this.”

Teaching Resources

When Villegas thinks back on his own schooling as a youth, he remembers how creativity and humor allowed him to retain his lessons, even to this day. Villegas makes an effort to employ the same methods in his own teaching in light of this.

Villegas stated, “I believe in the power of comedy, whether (it) is for public speaking (or) for education. I also use music in my classes because I’m a musician. In an effort to truly connect, I strive to use every tool at my disposal.

Villegas’ personal life has always included a lot of music, and he finds that it’s a good way to interact with his kids in the classroom.

Every three to four weeks, Villegas said, “We do songs. I choose a new song, and we go over and practice it. “After that, occasionally I’ll play it on my guitar. Or occasionally I’ll project it on the smart board, and the background music will be played. After several attempts at rehearsing, we will really sing the song together.

 

Today, Villegas is working with his students to assist them to compose the words to their own songs. Moreover, Villegas has taught practically all of the subjects covered in the school curriculum. When questioned about his varied experience, he replies that his familiarity with each of those subject areas aids in his ability to interact with the kids in a more comprehensive manner.

The personal experience Villegas has helps him connect with the kids. He feels a connection with pupils who have moved to the area because he was born in Mexico. In Fredericksburg Middle School, Villegas teaches ESL (English as a Second Language), assisting pupils in adjusting to the language barrier in the area.

Faith as foundation

Villegas draws strength from his faith and the idea that teaching is more of a mission than a job as he navigates the difficulties of a teaching career.

I have largely relied on my own faith in my personal life, Villegas remarked. In my opinion, the key to making something like this successful—especially in these trying times—is whenever you can demonstrate your faith through the way you live.

I’ve always thought of this line of work as a vocation, like a clergy or a religious organization. It’s a thought or emotion that comes from God. At the end of the day, it’s basically the only thing that brings fulfillment.

Villegas frequently employs the metaphor of planting seeds to express his involvement in the lives of his students. Villegas believes that his influence on his students comes more from his deeds than his words.

Villegas stated I try to have those high expectations for myself and for my kids. Every time you establish standards and hold people accountable to them, I’ve found that ultimately, people will endeavor to fulfill those expectations. Let’s check out the Sixth Grader Wins State Science Fair In GISD.

Villegas first expressed reluctance to be highlighted for his teaching skills, saying he likes to operate “behind the radar,” a sentiment shared by many excellent leaders. But every day, his students show the fruits of his labor, frequently exceeding the expectations he sets for them and modeling in his own life.

Villegas stated, “I just see a big need in attempting to sow those seeds for the future generation. I try to exemplify some of the excellent principles I believe in, not simply in the verbal lessons I give”.

“I see it as a component of my purpose in this place. I want to impart my knowledge and experience as effectively and creatively as I can before I depart this planet.