BRENHAM MAN NAMED WALLER HIGH SCHOOL “TEACHER OF THE YEAR”
A Brenham man that already has multiple “Teacher of the Year” awards to his credit has been honored again.
Chris Kenjura has been chosen as the Waller High School Teacher of the Year.
Kenjura is a business teacher in the high school’s Career and Technical Education Department.
He came to Waller after teaching for several years in Brenham ISD.
While with Brenham ISD, Kenjura was named as the Brenham High School Teacher of the Year in 2017, and also won the Smart/Maher VFW National Citizenship Education Teacher of the Year Award that same year.
Then in 2019, he was chosen as the Region 6 Teacher of the Year and the Career and Technical Association of Texas (CTAT) Teacher of the Year.
Kenjura’s wife, Danica, is also a teacher in the Waller ISD. They are the parents of two sons, Benjamin and Daniel.
Well, I have another story that needs to be mentioned here, but it happened a few years back. I have a fellow teacher friend who left BISD because after getting her masters in administration, and applying for interviews in our school district for an administrative position, there were none forthcoming. She was teacher of the year in two schools here, and also was teacher of the year for our entire school district. She also got teacher of the year in the new school district that she went to after leaving Brenham She went and interviewed in another school district that I will not name and was eventually hired as an assistant principal in that district. We lost a great great teacher because she could not even get an interview in the district. Was it because she was female, because it seems like men get positions so many more times than women here, and definitely get the interviews I taught with her a number of years and even partnered with her. She was an outstanding, beloved teacher I don’t think people know that some of this has been going on for a number of years. People who were teaching in our school district then and now, know who I am talking about. They know what I am saying is true. I told her she needed to stop wasting time trying to get a job interview here and start thinking about her own future and that she needed to leave the Brenham area to interview. And that’s just what she did! She taught a few years in that district and then applied for a school administrator job in that district. What an inexcusable loss to our district and town. Embarrassing!
Congrats, it makes me sad to know that we have lost so many great staff to other districts, why does this keep happening?
Congrats! It’s a shame BISD keeps losing all of it’s best teachers to other districts.
Congrats Christopher! Keep up the great work!
Congratulations Mr.Kenjura! So how did we mange to let this multiple time award winning teacher slip away over to Waller county? My guess and nothing to back it up is leadership or lack of here in Washington county at BISD personally it would have to be bad to get me to drive up and down 290 for a commute. You do good work and I wish you and your wife well Sir safe travels.
Waller ISD pays quite a bit more than Brenham ISD. Money talks, especially when husband & wife are both teachers! Thos 2 are not the only ones having moved from Brenham ISD to Waller ISD…
Mr. Kenjura has accolades from BISD, Region 6, and now Waller ISD. BISD administration and the school board need to ask themselves this question: why can they not retain teachers of this caliber? What is going on here that is running off great teachers?
It all boils down to money. Katy isd starts a teacher fresh out of college at $62,400 per year with absolutely no experience. They also provide an advanced degree stipend to pay more accordingly. Katy has much more to offer in the way of housing, shopping, schools, etc. That’s one school district example of thousands. Why make less money in a town that offers far less opportunity for career advancement? Makes lots of sense to move and actually prosper in life instead of scraping by in a stagnant work place environment.
Congratulations Chris!!