Huntsville ISD recognizes athletes, staff and Samuel Walker Houston Elementary’s MTSS momentum

HUNTSVILLE — The Huntsville Independent School District board used part of its meeting to recognize student and staff accomplishments across the district, including athletic state qualifiers, campus award winners and employee recognitions.

District staff presented Stewart Elementary’s PE teacher as educator of the month and named Michael Watkins, custodian at Stewart Elementary, employee of the month; Watkins told the board he takes pride in being on time and serving his campus. The board provided gift certificates from Texas Roadhouse and Walker County Ace Hardware alongside the recognitions.

Student athletes across multiple programs were honored: Special Olympics competitors, UIL Unified Basketball regional champions, wrestling state qualifiers and the Huntsville High School swim team, which included state qualifiers and a school-record swim by Grayson Lettersmith. Team members and coaches joined the meeting for photos and brief remarks.

Samuel Walker Houston Elementary was highlighted as a 2025–2026 MTSS Momentum Award winner from Branching Minds, a national recognition for schools showing rapid progress in their multi-tiered system of supports during the first 90 days of the school year. As part of the recognition, the school will receive a $300 gift card and a digital award badge; the district said the school’s MTSS work will be featured on Branching Minds’ channels.

The district also announced campus attendance winners for February: Samuel Walker Houston Elementary had the highest student attendance at 94.35 percent, and Manspark Middle School had the highest staff attendance at 96.89 percent.

Trustees thanked students, families and volunteers for supporting extracurricular programs and campus initiatives.