Just days after her high school graduation, Ashley Manquero, the valedictorian of OCTECH’s Class of 2022, learned she had been awarded 1 of 15 Student Hero awards from the State Board of Education (SBOE), a news release detailed.
Each of the 15 elected State Board representatives selects one student from their region to receive this award.
The District 1 representative, Georgina Perez from El Paso, selected Manquero. Her name was read as part of a resolution at the SBOE meeting in Austin on June 17.
A hard-working student who thinks of others’ needs and has the initiative to make things happen, Manquero earned this recognition for her many community outreach efforts not only here in Odessa but also in her hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico, the release said.
Her projects range from helping the homeless with hygiene packages; to advocating for women in abusive relationships through volunteer work at the Crisis Center; to organizing a drive to collect feminine products for low-income families, women in shelters and even fellow students; to visiting children in the hospital dressed as a superhero, or delivering a pizza to them to brighten their day. These are places adults often shy away from but not Manquero.
She is continually looking for ways to make the community better and she tackles problems head-on.
Thursday, Superintendent Scott Muri will do a local presentation of the Student Hero recognition to Ashley in the ECISD Board Room, 802 N. Sam Houston, at 1:45 p.m. The Student Heroes Award program recognizes Texas public school students in pre-kindergarten through high school who voluntarily work to assist and/or benefit their fellow Texas students. The service must be voluntary and not part of any curriculum, graduation requirement, class, or community project.
