[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 89 (Tuesday, June 7, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E835]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          HONORING JILL McGEE

                                  _____
                                 

                           HON. BETO O'ROURKE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 7, 2016

  Mr. O'ROURKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and recognize Jill 
McGee for her dedication and service to the El Paso community. As an 
elementary school teacher, Ms. McGee has stood out among her peers for 
her innovative teaching methods that empower and challenge her 
students.
  A native of Lincoln, Nebraska, Jill McGee earned her Spanish 
undergraduate degree from North Park University in Chicago, Illinois 
and her Master's degree in Bilingual Education from the University of 
Texas at El Paso. After graduating, Ms. McGee began her career as a 
teacher in the colonias of our sister city Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. 
Through her work in Ciudad Juarez, Ms. McGee has become fluent in 
Spanish and realized the importance of dual-language education. To this 
day, Ms. McGee often finds herself back in Ciudad Juarez where she 
continues to work several days a week with students from areas of 
extreme poverty.
  More recently, Ms. McGee has worked over the past five years as a 
second grade elementary school teacher at Mesita Elementary, a dual-
language elementary school in El Paso, Texas. At Mesita, she has 
incorporated the use of cutting edge technology in the classroom, such 
as computer coding and live broadcasting of her classes online, while 
also crafting a syllabus that challenges her students through problem-
based learning.
  To honor Jill McGee's decade-plus teaching career and dedication to 
dual-language learning, the El Paso Independent School District 
recently recognized her as the 2016 Elementary School Teacher of the 
Year.
  Jill McGee is an inspiration to the El Paso community, and I am 
honored to represent her.

                          ____________________