Huffines Foundation Awards Nearly $78,000 to Mesquite ISD Students and Teachers
Students, teachers, and campuses from Achziger Elementary, Smith Elementary, and Gentry Elementary were recognized Friday during Huffines Achievement Day, where the Huffines Foundation awarded nearly $78,000 in academic incentives through the Huffines Reward Program.
Held at the Horn High School Pavilion, the celebration recognized students and educators for measurable growth in math, reading, and STAAR preparation.
Through the program, 439 students earned rewards by mastering key academic benchmarks in mathematics and English language arts. Students earned $20 for each mastery badge achieved, with skills ranging from basic addition and phonics to algebra and reading inference.
Teachers and campuses also earned performance-based incentives tied to classroom-wide academic growth and STAAR preparation outcomes. One classroom earned the $10,000 Huffines Cup, awarded to the top-performing classroom based on the average number of badges earned per student.
This year, Achziger Elementary claimed the Huffines Cup with an average of 8.17 badges earned per student and a total of 1,274 badges earned campuswide.
Several participants were also recognized for standout accomplishments, including:
- Aaron Chavez of Smith Elementary, who answered 29,938 questions — the most in the program
- Damian Vergara Rodriguez of Smith Elementary, who completed 30,000 STAAR practice problems
- Suhana Mohammed Akbor of Achziger Elementary, the first student to earn all 12 mastery badges
- Brianna Ayers of Achziger Elementary is the top teacher based on average badges earned per student
Since the launch of the pilot program, participating students have completed more than 1.3 million practice problems and earned more than 2,700 mastery badges.
The event also featured carnival-style activities, games, food, student awards, and a special appearance by Mavs Man, the longtime in-game entertainer for the Dallas Mavericks.
The Huffines Foundation, a Dallas-area family foundation focused on education and community impact, partnered with Mesquite ISD to launch the free web-based Huffines Reward Program, which currently serves approximately 500 students across 26 classrooms.