Princeton ISD recently celebrated 75 teachers who received a designation through the Teacher Incentive Allotment, which is a component of House Bill 3 dedicated to recruit, support and retain highly effective teachers in all schools.

Aside from the hand-crafted plaque the teachers received, their paychecks in mid-May contained thousands of dollars in extra pay because of the state program that rewards high-performing teachers.

Since its implementation in 2023, Princeton ISD has awarded more than $2.5 million to its teachers through the TIA program.

State legislators approved funding for the program in 2019 as part of the school finance package to provide the most effective teachers a way to earn up to six-figure salaries while serving school systems that might struggle to retain educators.

TEA distributed $40 million to 3,650 teachers across the state in 26 school districts in its first year. For 2024, TEA distributed $292 million to 26,989 recipients in 542 districts.

Deputy Superintendent Dr. Jackie Hendricks, who spearheads the TIA initiative for Princeton, said all the work to participate in this program is worth it.

“It was a long, 3-year process to develop the initial plan, get it approved and capture data, but it was necessary to provide our teachers with a pathway to this funding,” she said. “Now that we are part of TIA, it’s amazing to see the benefits.”

Although the program is optional, it was a no-brainer for PISD administrators.

“The state has put aside this money to pay high performance teachers,” Dr. Hendricks said. “If we can create a pathway for our teachers to get that money, why wouldn’t we?”

Through the TIA, 23% of the instructional staff for PISD has now earned a designation, which appears on their teaching certificate for five years, and teachers receive the additional money every year for five years.

HB 3 set the range for funding between $3,000 and $32,000 based on set criteria.

“The amount varies in ranges based on the socioeconomic levels of the campus, as well as schools considered to have students with high needs,” Dr. Hendricks said. “For example, Princeton typically has qualified in a range of $3,000-$19,000, but our demographics continue to change.”

To identify teachers who might qualify, four areas were considered:

Teacher observation

Student growth

Leadership

Attendance

Texas Tech serves as the clearinghouse for PISD’s data.

“Tech reviews the data we send to determine a designation,” Dr. Hendricks said. “They certify that our data is valid, which shows that the measurements we use really work.”

All 14 Princeton ISD campuses had qualifying teachers this year, each receiving one of three possible designations, which included recognized, exemplary or master. Sixteen teachers earned the master’s designation, while there are 43 exemplary and 16 recognized.

“I can’t think of a better way to spend my day than delivering good news to the outstanding teachers of Princeton ISD,” Superintendent Donald McIntyre said. “It is awesome to see the looks on their faces when we surprise them on campus. It’s even better to watch their students react and get excited for them. There was plenty of cheering and clapping going on around the district.”

Teacher Incentive Allotment recipients awarded in 2025 include:

Canup:

Michaela Ackerman, Exemplary

Kristi Foster, Exemplary

Christa Martinez, Exemplary

 

Godwin:

Lujan Flores Zulema, Exemplary

Dawn Myers, Recognized

Margaret Webb, Exemplary

 

Green:

Kathryn Derose, Exemplary

Keegan Green, Exemplary

Stephanie McPherson, Exemplary

 

Harper:

Trina Chandler, Exemplary

Miranda Garlington, Master

Courtney Andrews, Exemplary

 

James:

Kay George, Recognized

Riley Hooks, Exemplary

Patricia Stevens, Exemplary

 

Lacy:

Rosario Conrad, Recognized

Ashleigh Jones, Recognized

 

Lowe:

LaDonna Bingman, Exemplary

Paula Bodie, Exemplary

Juan Manuel Serna Licona, Exemplary

Cassandra Thornton, Exemplary

 

Mayfield:

Rebecca Clark, Exemplary

Jairus Elsbury, Master

Kimberly Fisher, Exemplary

Diane Johnson, Exemplary

Maria Morales, Recognized

Jodie Walker, Master

 

Smith:

Caitlyn Carr, Exemplary

Tiffany Collins, Exemplary

Emily Hemmenway, Recognized

Maegan Long, Recognized

Kenzy Miller, Exemplary

Robin Milstead, Recognized

Brooke Richardson, Exemplary

Eric Venters, Exemplary

 

Clark:

Cody Walker, Exemplary

 

Mattei:

Samantha Boswell, Master

Kelly Brown, Exemplary

Monique Cardwell, Exemplary

Samantha Humphreys, Exemplary

Melissa Payan, Exemplary

Jason Tucker, Recognized

Julie Tully, Recognized

 

Southard:

Katherine Barnett, Recognized

Stephen Boie, Master

Lauren Dierolf, Exemplary

Kimberly Clark, Recognized

Amari Jones, Master

Jon Kathman, Exemplary

Raven Morris, Exemplary

Hannah Murray, Master

Donna Pugh, Recognized

Amber Raymond, Exemplary

Sherry Stover, Master

Jessica Thompson, Master

 

Lovelady:

Tina Mauldin, Master

Pedro Salazar, Exemplary

Katherine Smith, Exemplary

Tania Vaughn, Master

Yuni Wolf, Master

 

PHS:

Kent Ackmann, Master

Shalley Boles, Exemplary

Mike Brinkerhoff, Exemplary

Tommi Bullard, Exemplary

Daniel Galerne, Recognized

Shaun Henry, Exemplary

Amy Kennedy, Recognized

Eric Lockman, Exemplary

Sidnee Loor, Exemplary

Lisa Nalls, Exemplary

Cheryl Peterson, Master

Jason Smith, Exemplary

Heather Stringer, Master

Crystal Telles, Master

Austin Webster, Recognized