(CEDAR HILL, TEXAS) Krystal Rising has found creative ways to teach her scholars about STEM.
“We do a lot of outside-the-box activities,” Rising said. “We played musical chairs with ecosystems. Every time someone got up, there was a change in the ecosystem. We learned about the Water Cycle and the Food Web.”
Rising, a second-year teacher at Collegiate Prep Elementary, is a CHISD STEM Teacher of the Year finalist on her campus. The winner will be announced at the Leadership & Service Awards on May 9.
“I was surprised to be nominated,” Rising said. “I try to help wherever I am needed.”
Rising, who teaches Fifth Grade Science, is the parent of four Collegiate Prep scholars – with one in Kindergarten, second-grade twins, and a fourth grader.
She lives in Cedar Hill with her husband, Tim (a history teacher at Cedar Hill High School), and their four children.
“Having my children at Collegiate Prep forces me to switch my hat from teacher to parent at the drop of a dime,” Rising said. “This campus is a family-oriented place.”
An Orlando, Florida native, Rising met her husband at Florida A&M University, a Historically Black College & University (HBCU) in Tallahassee, Florida. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, and the couple moved to Tim’s hometown of Jacksonville.
Rising was the parent liaison for the Duval County School District, including Jacksonville, and she also worked as a principal’s secretary.
Rising, who comes from a family of educators, decided to pursue teaching when she arrived in Texas, in 2022.
“I enjoy preparing kids for middle school,” Rising said.
If Rising wins, that means it will be a repeat for Collegiate Prep. Last year, Collegiate Prep’s Davie Moore was named CHISD STEM Teacher of the Year.
Rising said she’d use the $5,000 campus prize money for a STEM event “to bring people and STEM businesses from the community to build partnerships.”
She would use the $5,000 personal prize money for STEM-related professional development.
