Texas district leaders Tiana Rodriguez and Divina Browne credit success to their teachers and a firm belief that every student is a math person.
It seems like everyone is searching for the next secret to educational success, especially with 2024 education trend predictions making the rounds this time of year. But here at Carnegie Learning, we know there’s one “secret to success” that matters most: it’s the people.
Students are the heart and soul of what every educator does.
Teachers are a lifeline for many students and spend innumerable hours shaping kids’ futures.
And administrators are the glue that holds the system together.
That’s why, after hearing that Aldine Independent School District’s Algebra I pilot program with our Texas Math Solution resulted in an incredible 100% STAAR pass rate and classrooms district-wide saw a 27% increase in fall STAAR interim scores, we needed to speak to the people making an impact.
Humans are at the heart of any successful learning experience, and Texas district leaders Tiana Rodriguez and Divina Browne have proven just that.
Tiana Rodriguez’s unwavering commitment to teachers
Tiana Rodriguez, Middle School Math Program Director for Aldine ISD, is an educator who is unwaveringly committed to her teachers. She’s in the trenches with them, helping to implement a new curriculum right alongside them, and couldn’t be more excited.
During a tumultuous time in education, Ms. Rodriguez moved from teaching into her supervisory role; schools were returning to post-pandemic in-person learning, and teachers faced new challenges. Add to that Aldine ISD’s adoption of the new Texas Math Solution, and Ms. Rodriguez knew her teachers needed on-the-ground support more than ever.
Ms. Rodriguez also knew that to confidently lead her teachers in adopting a new math solution, she had to have hands-on experience. “We had teacher vacancies,” she shares. “So I said, put me in a math classroom. Let me do this. Let me figure this new curriculum out. Let’s do this together.”
And together was the way to go. Because Ms. Rodriguez was fully committed to learning the ins and outs of a new curriculum right alongside her teachers, they were able to navigate to astounding success. Aldine ISD teachers and students are crushing it when it comes to new STAAR testing and a new math solution.
However, Ms. Rodriguez doesn’t take credit for Aldine ISD’s math victories. “The success is owed to the teachers,” she emphasizes. “Our teachers are why we’re successful. They work really hard and are the reason I’m still excited to be in education. If it weren’t for our teachers, we wouldn’t have the success that we do.”
Dr. Divina Browne knows anyone can be a math expert
Ms. Rodriguez’s high school counterpart is Dr. Divina Browne, High School Math Program Director for Aldine ISD. And what a great team they make! With deep admiration for their teachers and the knowledge that math is for everyone, this dynamic duo sets the stage for Aldine ISD students to experience lifelong mathematics success.
And Dr. Browne’s rallying cry is the foundation for Aldine ISD’s accomplishments: “Anyone can be a mathematics expert!”
Dr. Browne’s belief that math is for everyone is apparent in everything she says and does; she’s even passed it down to her teachers.
“Our teachers recognize that it doesn’t matter where students start with their skill level. Math is accessible to everyone,” she shares. “It’s so exciting to see.”
“I love to see students coming out of their shells and becoming more confident talking about what they notice about math,” Dr. Browne continues.
That student confidence has proof to back it up. Under Dr. Browne’s leadership and with the hard work of the educators at Aldine Ninth Grade School, a group of underdog students passed the Algebra 1 STAAR with a 100% success rate.
These strides forward are what keep Dr. Browne pounding the drum of accessible math. “I really want students to feel like they can do math,” she says. “I want to eliminate the idea that math is a gift to a specific set of people. I want them all to realize, ‘Hey, math is interesting and relevant to my life. And I can become good at math.’”
Aldine ISD’s success doesn’t stop here
Aldine ISD has seen wide-ranging math success with the Texas Math Solution. We love to hear that, but we can’t take the credit.
Help us celebrate the educators behind the success of a group of underdog ninth graders. Sure, these kids have a robust math solution on their side, but more importantly, they have adults in their corner who see them for more than their testing success.
Before joining Carnegie Learning's marketing team in 2022, Karen spent 16 years teaching mathematics and social studies in Ohio classrooms. She has a passion for inclusive education and believes that all learners can be meaningfully included in academic settings from day one. As a former math and special education teacher, she is excited to provide educators with the latest in best-practices content so that they can set all students on the path to becoming confident "math people."
Explore more related to this authorI want to eliminate the idea that math is a gift to a specific set of people. I want [my students] to realize, ‘Hey, math is interesting and relevant to my life. And I can become good at math.’
Dr. Divina Browne, High School Math Program Director, Aldine ISD, Aldine, TX
