- May 07, 2026
- By Emily Schuster
When Sergio Cabrera ’14, M.Ed. ’17 walked into an assembly at Mill Creek Towne Elementary School in Rockville on Tuesday, the P.E. teacher thought he was there to supervise students. But the deafening cheers of more than 100 kids made it clear the gathering was in his honor.
Testudo bowed to him in dramatic fashion as visitors including Kimberly Griffin, dean of the University of Maryland College of Education, waved pom-poms and signs reading “Thank You” and “Best Teacher Ever.” He’s one of three exceptional UMD alum teachers recognized during a daylong series of surprise visits in what has become a College of Education tradition during national Teacher Appreciation Week, which runs through Friday.
In addition to Cabrera, the college surprised two other alums: Elizabeth Pandya ’14, M.P.P. ’16, M.Ed. ’21, an English Language Development (ELD) teacher at Templeton Elementary School in Landover, and Daniel Stein ’16, a modern world history teacher at Northwood High School in Rockville. Each received a $1,000 check and a bag filled with College of Education-branded swag, along with words of gratitude from their students, colleagues and UMD leaders.
“Teacher Appreciation Week reminds us of how important teachers are, but truly, they are important every single day,” said Griffin. “Nothing gets accomplished without teachers. We don’t have doctors, lawyers, engineers, without good teachers.”
Colleagues surround Elizabeth Pandya ’14, M.P.P. ’16, M.Ed. ’21, an English language development teacher at Templeton Elementary School in Landover.
During the first stop of the day at Templeton, a group of fifth graders, teachers and administrators joined the College of Education visitors in a classroom to surprise Pandya, known for her passionate advocacy for students and their families, especially multilingual learners. Pandya shares her knowledge with other educators, mentoring student teachers from UMD and leading professional development sessions to equip her colleagues with the skills they need to help multilingual learners succeed.
Her extraordinary dedication shone extra bright this year, her colleagues say. She recently earned her National Board Certification (the most respected professional certification in education) and she will receive her fourth degree from UMD, an Ed.D. in school system leadership, this month—all while preparing to welcome her first child at the end of May.
“Templeton is truly such a unique place, with kids from so many different cultures and backgrounds,” said Pandya, who worked as a literacy teacher in Baltimore and in the central offices of D.C. Public Schools before deciding to specialize in ELD. She has taught ELD at Templeton since earning her master’s degree at UMD five years ago. “The University of Maryland and Templeton mean so much to me, so to have all my worlds together and celebrating is such an honor.”
Next, the College of Education representatives and Testudo paraded into Stein’s classroom at Northwood, interrupting a lesson on world leaders. During this stop, they were joined by Francisco Echeverria ’27, one of Stein’s former students, who is now majoring in secondary social studies education at UMD. He credits Stein’s welcoming and supportive nature with inspiring him to become a social studies teacher and to attend UMD.
Stein has taught at Northwood since graduating from UMD a decade ago, and he also mentors young men as a baseball coach at the school. His colleagues praise him for his patience and empathy, his focus on fostering emotional resilience and his ability to connect with students on a personal level. Northwood’s class of 2021 even invited him to be their graduation speaker. Stein hosts prospective future teachers in his classroom to help them get a sense of the profession and also mentors current UMD students who are in the process of becoming teachers..
Asked what he loves most about teaching, Stein replied, “Just helping kids, whether it’s in the classroom or their personal lives. Just being the support for the kids is really meaningful, even on the rough days.”
The last stop of the day was the celebration for Cabrera at Mill Creek Towne. Cara Grant, program director of UMD’s Master of Education with teacher certification (MCERT) program in physical education, asked the kids to raise their hands “if Mr. Cab has helped you in some way to be a better mover, a better thinker or love yourself a little more”—and nearly every hand in the room shot up.
“It’s my absolute pleasure and honor to be your teacher,” Cabrera told the students, some of whom held up handmade signs on sheets of blue, yellow and pink paper, spelling out “WE [heart] MR. CAB CONGRATULATIONS” in colorful markers.
As a bilingual educator working at the school since 2017, Cabrera removes language barriers for his Spanish-speaking students, helping them feel included and fostering their success. He often spends his planning and lunch periods supporting kids who need extra care or encouragement, and he also serves on the school’s crisis intervention and prevention team to foster students’ mental well-being and emotional regulation skills. Cabrera mentors future P.E. teachers studying at UMD and trains educators across the district in creative ways to integrate technology into classroom assessments.
For Cabrera, teaching is a “dream that came true.” After graduating from high school, he spent 10 years working in granite remodeling and construction, but his true passion lay in his second job—coaching martial arts at night, leading him to the realization that teaching was his calling.
“My favorite part of the job is interacting with happy children all day long,” said Cabrera. “It’s always fun to see them really push themselves to learn a new skill, or see them engage in a skill that they already shine in. They say, ‘Mr. Cab, look at this, did you see me?’ That’s the best part, at the end of the day.”
Testudo congratulates Sergio Cabrera ’14, M.Ed. ’17, a physical education teacher at Mill Creek Towne Elementary School in Rockville.
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