Sandra Hernandez loves teaching Spanish. The Fox Tech teacher says she loves what she does because she is proud of her first language and her Mexican heritage.

She loves teaching the language so much that she pursued a master’s degree to increase the school’s Spanish offerings.

“I went back to university to acquire my master's degree in Spanish because I wanted to teach the upper Spanish Course, AP Spanish Language and Culture (4) and AP Spanish Literature (5),” Hernandez said.

It was a multi-year undertaking for Hernandez, who earned the master’s degree from UTSA taking night classes during the school year.

“I started my journey in Fall 2017 and completed the master's degree in Fall 2022,” Hernandez said. “UTSA doesn’t offer the master's degree Spanish courses during the summer, and I was only able to take one or two courses during the school year.”

All four years she’s been working at Fox Tech, she has been working on the degree, with her students in mind. She knows first-hand the struggles many students face and sees education as a transformative investment.

“I come from a low-income family,” Hernandez said. “My mom learned to read and write at age 40. I am the first generation and only one in my family to earn a degree.”

While she worked on her graduate degree, she also taught high school full time and took care of her two daughters at home. The work paid off. She has her master’s degree in Spanish Literature with a Certificate en Lingüística. With that, she is now an adjunct professor for San Antonio College and her students can earn college credit for their upper-level Spanish courses.

“I told my students how challenging the classes were and how I struggled financially to pay for the courses every semester,” Hernandez said. “For me, the main reason I tell them all about this issue is because I want them to value and respect all teachers. We work hard to be here, we make a lot of sacrifices, and we struggle, but we still do it for them. We do it because we love our career.”