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As a schoolgirl growing up in Kenya, Dr. Rachel Butiko MAED ’10 experienced the fruits of education in the most literal sense.

Knowing she could read and write, the uneducated women of her village gifted Butiko bananas in exchange for reading the letters their working husbands sent home from the cities. 

“I grew up in a very poor environment and the one thing I knew would take me out of that was education,” Butiko said. “Education was a key to so many things.”

Butiko began her teaching career in Kenya. After arriving in the U.S., she struggled in the classroom, which led her to enroll in 91�鶹ӳ����ý’s Master of Arts in Education program, focusing on English as a second language.  

“91�鶹ӳ����ý gave me a voice—the voice to be the teacher I am,” she said. “When I left 91�鶹ӳ����ý, I felt confident. I knew I had a direction.”

Today, Butiko teaches a diverse group of English language learners at Hodges Bend Middle School in Houston, Texas, where she was named Teacher of the Year for 2022–23.

Many arrive in her classroom as immigrants knowing little to no English. As someone who learned English as a second language herself, Butiko sees the position, which she has held for 15 years, as a perfect fit.

Last August, she was recognized by Houston Life, a local news and lifestyle program, in a segment called “Honoring Amazing Teachers.” (Watch the clip ).

“This is a blessing,” an overwhelmed and beaming Butiko told the film crew who surprised her in her classroom. “But you know who makes me great? These people,” she noted, pointing proudly to her students as the camera panned across their desks.