6 Questions for Teacher of the Year Heidi Zeko

The Hexter Special Education teacher talks about her favorite moments in the classroom, an unpredictable year, and her love of our community.

Heidi Zeko, an Old Lake Highlands resident, was named DISD Teacher of the Year for her contributions in the classroom over the last academic year. Heidi teaches Special Education at Victor H. Hexter Elementary School, one of DISD’s most recognized and highly rated elementary schools. A University of Oklahoma graduate, she has lived in Old Lake Highlands for over twenty years.

On a recent Friday afternoon, I sat down (virtually) with Heidi to discuss her accomplishment and experiences teaching.

What inspired you to choose teaching as a career?

Heidi remembers taking those middle and high school career assessments and getting one consistent answer—teaching. She denied this answer every time and held off in college on deciding on a major until she finally landed on Elementary Education. In her studies, she was exposed to the special education classroom and remembered fondly walking away from that experience, telling herself, “I’m going back to school to get my master’s in this.” Heidi followed through on that decision, pursuing her Masters in Special Education and additionally obtaining Teaching Certificates in Mental Retardation (Intellectual Disability), Physical Handicaps, and Learning Disabilities. She now focuses on Functional Living Skills for students with intellectual disabilities, and often physical handicaps.

 What are you like in the classroom?

Heidi keeps things light-hearted, recognizing students have been dealt a tough hand with a mix of medical and physical challenges, and that it is her role to make the day academic but also fun and positive. Professionals will come in and out of the classroom for activities like physical therapy, and Heidi shared that they “love our kids and they love the classroom,” with the energy infective and the students feeling special to have visitors just for them.

 What would your students say you are best known for?

“You’re crazy, Mrs. Zeko, you’re crazy” was how one of her beloved students always described her, and throughout the day she hears, “you’re so funny!” Every day is unique, mistakes will happen, and there are constant surprises. Through it all, Heidi makes sure that she and staff can laugh at themselves and not take things too seriously—“we just roll with it,” she says with a chuckle.

What has been your most memorable moment in the classroom over the past year?

Moving to virtual teaching is unprecedented, and Heidi hasn’t seen anything like it in her almost 20 years of teaching. From the learning curve of the software and technology to working with a distributed staff, the change was daunting, but she is proud by how much teachers across the school have stepped up to the challenge.

Outside of COVID, she shared a story of one student who loved to escape the classroom. Anytime she or her assistant weren’t looking, he would take off down the hall. As soon as he was gone, they would start yelling their codeword, but “he was really cute and loveable, so everyone would just wave at him as he ran by!” Eventually, everyone learned who he was and would help out when they saw him speeding by, and he never once made it outside the building. And the codeword? “RUNNER!”

If you weren’t a teacher, what would your second career choice be?

Heidi loves physical therapy and sees physical therapists in the classroom quite a bit helping her students in such a transformative way. She thinks it would be a fun and active career to be able to help others become more physically fit and capable, especially after the impact it has had in her classroom. 

What is your favorite thing about the Old Lake Highlands community?

“The people.” Heidi loves her community and her neighbors, and the “laid-back, like-mindedness, and free-thinking” attitude amongst them. When a new neighbor moves in, “you never know what to expect,” but she has been pleasantly surprised every time. She also appreciates how removed it feels from the city and how much nature surrounds us, with nightly dog walks along the many trails, creeks, and parks in the area.

We thank Heidi for her incredible work in the classroom and are proud to have her as one of our OLH neighbors!