One Class at a Time: Kolista Garcia at Coronado High

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - Coronado High School teacher and coach Kolista Garcia is the third 2022-2023 recipient of KCBD’s One Class at a Time $500 donation and recognition sponsored by Frontier Dodge and Spirit Chrysler.

When Coach Garcia found out she would receive this month’s award, she was a little confused.

She said, “Is there another Kolista Garcia here? I started crying, because we all go through things in life and I felt like God was saying, ‘Hey, you’re right where you need to be and you deserve it.’ So it’s nice, it hit me to the core.”

You see, Garcia not only goes above and beyond to serve her students and co-workers, she actually drives in from Abilene everyday to do it.

Administration and students at Coronado had nothing but good things to say about her, and the feeling is mutual.

“I’ve never, ever had so much support from an admin team”, Garcia said. “They are always checking up on you, asking how you are, showing their appreciation. It’s easy to be overlooked. So when you feel like they truly care for you, it makes you an even better coach and teacher. You want to do what’s best and give back to them.”

The non-profit Garcia chose to “give back” to is ‘Communities in Schools’. This means they also receive a $500 gift. Nichole Abbott, Coronado’s site coordinator for Communities in Schools says the money will go a long way in their mission of supporting the students.

“I’ll be able to provide food, clothing, help pay for bills, gas, get gas cards with the money, even hygiene products. Honestly, anything you can think of, anything these kids might need to be supported and succeed in school, is what we provide”, said Abbott.

As for other teachers putting in the work, Coach Garcia had a little advice for them as well.

She said, “Your work is not going unnoticed. Somebody out there is appreciative and it may be that one kid that sits in the back that you smile at everyday. The one that you give attention to, and he may not get attention somewhere else. But people notice.”

If you would like to nominate a teacher on the South Plains for the ‘One Class at a Time’ grant, just go to https://www.kcbd.com/story/36148189/one-class-at-a-time/.

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