Shelby Roos

During a lab, my friend and I were goofing around and she accidentally broke a beaker. Biology teacher Cassandra Debottis rushed over to make sure we were okay. We were scared we’d get in trouble, but she just cleaned the mess without a fuss.

Going into my freshman year, everyone told me biology was going to be a hard class. That thought changed once I started my first lesson with Mrs. Debottis. She changed my perspective on the school and the subject. Whenever I need help with something, I’m never afraid to ask her because she’s so kind and never thinks a question is a dumb one. 

During our STAAR review, I missed multiple days and was stressed that I couldn’t make up the work, but Mrs. Debottis came in clutch. She walked me through the entire lesson. She always makes time in our busy day to check in with students she sees daily. I love how you can tell she cares for her students, encouraging us to finish the year strong. 

In her class, we do multiple activities in a week that will help our studies, like when we went outside and blew bubbles that replicated the cell membrane. Another time, we all chipped in and brought snacks, so that we could have them as rewards. Later on, she personalized our study sessions based on what we, as a class and individually, needed to work on before our EOC.

Whenever I see her, I’m always excited to greet her with a smile and ask how her day was, as she does the same. I will always remember the day I walked into her class on the first day of school and how, with the biggest smile on her face, she greeted us and made me finally feel like Kingwood Park was the place to be.

By Dayna Trevizo

Everybody looks forward to the end of the day, right? The reason mostly being that we’re close to going home. But I look forward to my sixt period regardless of whether or not I’m going to do a lot of work. 

Even when her students are unmotivated to do their work, biology teacher Cassandra Debottis always helps and encourages us to finish. She makes sure she isn’t going too fast and that each of her students understand the lesson. She makes the end of the day fun and something to look forward to. It’s not just her help, it’s her attitude.

When I finish my work and get it all right, she makes me feel proud of myself instead of just thinking, “Oh, I got it right, whatever.” My classmates and I can always talk to Mrs. Debottis, whether it’s about school work, our family or anything else going on. 

I stopped having an interest in science in elementary school, but Mrs. Debottis relit my love for science. She keeps me interested in the way she explains things. Even on the most boring days, I can look forward to learning something new in biology.

At the end of class, my classmates and I joke about being Mrs. Debottis’s favorite students. It makes her laugh and I love seeing my teachers happy. 

I can confess to doubting myself during tests or units in general. But with Mrs. Debottis as a teacher, my confidence has risen. At the beginning of the school year I was contemplating dropping advanced biology, but Mrs. Debottis made me love it.