CISD teacher earns place on prestigious education cohort

By Editor | June 17, 2026

“One of our exemplary educators”

Encinal Elementary Instructional Coach Nadia Perusquia is one of 13 educators from across the country recently named to the prestigious National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) 2027 Teacher Leader Fellows Cohort.

Educators named to the group learn alongside NIET in a one-year program geared at deepening knowledge of the best instructional practices to more effectively support the work taking place within and beyond their school and district.

“A huge congratulations to one of our exemplary educators who is a member of our Cotulla ISD team,” CISD Superintendent Dr. Ramiro Nava said. “Thank you for your dedication to the students and staff at Encinal Elementary and Cotulla ISD. This national honor you earned is only the start for you. Keep up the great work. We are so blessed to have you on our team.”

Only 13 educators nationwide were named to the cohort, with only two coming from Texas.

Perusquia extended her thanks to school officials, fellow teachers and members of the community for their support.

“I’m truly honored and grateful for this opportunity and proud to represent Cotulla ISD,” she said.

“I am proud to welcome these 13 exceptional educators into our 2027 NIET Teacher Leader Fellows cohort,” NIET Chief Executive Officer Dr. Joshua Barnett said. “This fellowship is rooted in NIET’s strong commitment to empowering educators, creating impactful teacher leadership roles, and generating excellence in schools nationwide.

“We look forward to working with these outstanding teacher leaders throughout this year as they expand their impact by strengthening instruction and accelerating student achievement in their schools, districts, and states.”

The NIET Teacher Leader Fellows Program consists of dynamic teacher leaders from schools who demonstrate educator excellence with a proven ability to advance student success and model this ability to other educators.

As part of the fellowship, each educator will receive a $7,500 stipend, participate in professional development activities designed to enhance their leadership capabilities, and contribute to the development of content for NIET.

Each fellow will also shadow NIET’s team locally to advance their coaching skills to more effectively support educators in their own schools and districts.

To be eligible for the NIET Teacher Leader Fellows Program, applicants must be school-based teacher leaders, have at least three years of experience as a full-time teacher leader, and expect to remain in a teacher leader position for the upcoming school year.

The program will run from July 2026 through June 2027. The fellows this year were selected from a competitive application pool from across the nation.