The following Q&A session is with the Director of Communications and Special Projects Manager Debbie Campbell. She was HISD’s Employee of the Month for September 2015 (click here to view Houston ISD’s video profile of her).

Do you have any hobbies? Any likes or dislikes?

C: I love to read, I love photography and I like travel.

How long have you been working at HISD?

C: Its been a total of 13 years. I was at Condit for 10 years, and this is my third year here at Bellaire.

What brought you to Bellaire?

C: I have lived in the city for 25 years, and I came to Bellaire with my daughter, first as parent. It’s definitely a great school.

So what are you most excited for about this school year in general?

C: There’s so many things. I have to think about what I’m most excited about. I’m excited about the integration of technology and instruction in the classrooms. That’s probably one of the most exciting things. And, then, the sense of community within the school and the students and the teachers and the pride and all the different programs.

What influenced you to have this career? Any people? Any experiences?

C: I was in the classroom for a long time, teaching instructional technology and so being able to use the tools and the things I was teaching kids in a way that benefited a whole school was really kind of what put me together with my current career, outside of the classroom, by using digital tools and using those to create systems and implement that knowledge to their lives.

What part of your job appeals to you the most?

C: I really love the freshman transition program and the Cardinal Crew leaders; it’s fantastic since we get to help the freshman. Also, I like being the person who gets all the good news when we accomplish something great.

What’s your philosophy on teaching, or education, in general?

C: I think it needs to be relevant and real as well as be current to what’s going on in the world. I really believe that it needs to be collaborative where kids or adults or whoever is learning are learning together and they’re actively looking for answers to questions they have and not just memorizing stuff.

And, congratulations, on winning. That’s really big. How does it feel to be a 2015 HISD Employee of the Month?

C: I love working at Bellaire, so I greatly appreciate the recognition.

What was your first thought when you won?

C: Oh, definitely, you’ve got to be kidding me.

So, what do you think the award says about you?

C: I think it says a lot about Bellaire, about the community here and what the community is accomplishing. And it says a lot about the school, not necessarily something about me, other than that I love my job.

Did you think you were going to win?

C: No, I didn’t even know they had summited it in. It was an absolute surprise.

And what do you think is your greatest accomplishment, besides this award?

C: Absolutely, my family. I have three kids, two of them go to Texas A&M and the other one goes to Baylor University. My family, hands down, is my greatest accomplishment.