HEAD OF THE CLASS
H-E-Buddy, the lovable grocery-bag mascot of San Antonio-based supermarket chain H-E-B, and friends surprised Taylor High School teacher Vicki Rowe this past week with the announcement she is a finalist in the 2025 H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards.
Rowe received a $1,000 check during the visit to her classroom Jan. 29.
She is one of five Texas teachers competing for the Lifetime Achievement Award, which honors educators with over 20 years of experience.
Her title as a finalist also won the high school $1,000. This is the educator’s third time as a top contender in the H-E-B competition.
Among her 43 years of experience, Rowe has spent 25 of them at Taylor High, currently serving as an English language arts teacher and coach for the Academic Decathlon and University Interscholastic League ready-writing and spelling teams.
“First and foremost, my scholars, they have my heart,” Rowe said. “I want always what’s best for them. I sometimes push them to the point where I don’t think they know their own capabilities, and I want them to work harder, and … I know in my heart that they can do so many wonderful things in their futures and for our society in general.”
Rowe’s favorite moments are when students begin to understand
the lessons and make connections.
“There’s a glow. It’s like, you know, they talk about the little light bulb that goes off over the top of the head or whatever, but it’s in the eyes. It’s in the face. It’s in the realization that, ‘Oh wow. I get it now,’” Rowe said. “They see how all of these things are connected, how humanities and science flow together, how one has an influence on the other.”
Rowe has designed her classroom to become a place of comfort, not just for students but also for staff, such as the safety officer who enjoyed the quiet environment.
“(The safety officer) said to me, ‘I always like to come to your room because it’s so peaceful,’” Rowe said.
In addition to being a place of comfort, Rowe’s classroom is a space for encouragement as she fills it with her scholars’ achievements and shares the stories of her former pupils.
“I do a ‘Where are they now’ with my students. … I want them to see what they can be,” Rowe said. “My former students have written, like, what they’re doing now … and also words of wisdom … to my (current) students as they move forward.”
Rowe was an H-E-B finalist in 2022 and 2018.
“It’s always exciting when we see a finalist again because it just goes to show you the incredible work that they’re doing,” H-E-B public affairs manager Jill Reynolds said.
In May, Rowe will participate in a personal interview with a panel of judges looking for educators who go above and beyond for their pupils. The winner and their school will each receive $25,000.
“She’s (Rowe) very involved with … helping them (students) apply for colleges, getting into colleges,” Reynolds said. “She does the Academic Decathlon, where she’s actually teaching them to speak and give, you know, things that are actually helping them for their future and … things that are helping them to go on and be productive citizens.”
Rowe also won Best School Teacher in the Taylor Press Reader’s Choice Awards for 2024.
“My life has been filled with all these incredible experiences,” Rowe said. “I want that for my students. I want them to feel the joy, to go out and take those risks … Don’t just sit still. Instead, find your place in the world. Enjoy the world, and the world will give back to you in so many ways.”
To become a finalist, educators must be nominated and then be invited to apply. Applications are then judged by five regional judging panels that select 50 finalists.
Community members can nominate Texas teachers, principals, counselors, school districts, early childhood facilities and school boards.
The deadline to nominate for the 2026 award season is Sept. 28 and can be done online at heblovesteachers. com/nominate/.
“ Enjoy the world, and the world will give back to you in so many ways.”
— VICKI R OWE, TAYLOR HIGH S
CHOOL EDUCATOR
