UTeach Master Teachers

Dr. Omar Elizondo has experience teaching for PSJA ISD, where he taught South Texas College Dual Credit Biology 1406 and 1407 at Thomas Jefferson T-STEM Early College High School and Sonia Sotomayor Early College High School.
He works predominantly with the introductory UTCH 1101 Inquiry Approaches to Teaching. He also works with other UTeach courses, UTCH 3303-Project-Based Instruction, UTCH 4601 - Apprentice Teaching, and BIOL 4392 - Research Methods in the Science and Mathematics Classroom.

As a graduate from the University of Texas-Pan American, he hopes to build a future of highly qualified and engaged science teachers to influence the future science education in the Rio Grande Valley. He hopes to connect science education in the classroom and online through technology and proven pedagogical practices.

Mr. Elizondo is a UTRGV Faculty Fellow in Educational Technology (2021) and a Faculty Fellow for Active Learning (2024). 

Mr. Elizondo has a B.S. (2006) and M.S. (2008) in Biology from the University of Texas-Pan American, an M.S. in Library Science (2019) from Sam Houston State University, and an M.S. in Education, Educational Technology (2020) from the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley. He recently earned his Doctorate from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in Curriculum and Instruction focusing on AI literacy in STEM Teachers in 2026. 

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Associate Professor of Practice - Science Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: omar.elizondo@utrgv.edu
EEDUC 3.240B
Phone: (956) 665-2977

Dr. Elizabeth Goldberg is a graduate of both the UTeach bachelor's and Science Education master's programs at the University of Texas at Austin. After over eight years teaching high school biology, chemistry, physics, and AP Physics I in Austin and McAllen, Texas, she was thrilled to become an Assistant Professor of Practice / Master Science Teacher with the UTRGV UTeach program. In this capacity, her goal is to train the next generation of UTeach graduates to become innovators in inquiry-based STEM education.

To help her students complete this transformation, she organizes several professional development series for UTeach alums and pre-service teachers, such as UTeach Science Week and Terrific Tuesdays. She also chairs the UTeach STEM Education Association (USEA) Induction and Professional Development working group, is creating with FIU UTeach, an online Induction program for UTeach graduates, and is a member of the USEA Equity and Racial Justice professional development committee. She has presented at regional and national conferences on inquiry-based lessons and pedagogy, served on the Texas State Board of Education Physics TEKS Streamlining Committee, is a member of the UTRGV Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC) grant implementation team, and serves on the USEA national board as the secretary-treasurer. She earned a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with a STEM specialization from Texas Tech University.

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Associate Professor of Practice - Science Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: elizabeth.goldberg@utrgv.edu
EEDUC 2.523
Phone: (956) 665-5867

Anna Gonzalez is on a mission to increase the number of qualified math and science teachers in the secondary schools. UTeach focuses exclusively on STEM teaching and emphasizes inquiry and project-based instruction. There is a significant population of talented undergraduate STEM majors who do not yet know that they want to become teachers. Because of their love for math and science, they have the potential to be great teachers. UTeach is designed to help them discover and then realize that potential. 

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Associate Professor of Practice - Math Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: anna.gonzalez@utrgv.edu
EEDUC 2.648
Phone: (956) 665-3209

Pamela Groves has experience teaching nearly every science subject from 6th through 12th grade. Her goal is to instill a passion for teaching science in her students while focusing on sound pedagogy. Mrs. Groves has over 10 years of experience in education at Harlingen CISD – Secondary Alternative Center, Coakley Middle School, and Dr. Abraham P. Cano 9th Grade Academy

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Associate Professor of Practice - Science Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: pamela.groves01@utrgv.edu
BLHSB 2.914
Phone: (956) 882-5867

An educator who has served in South Texas as a mathematics teacher, campus administrator, and central office administrator for many years. She firmly believes that the role of an effective teacher is to guide students to discover mathematical concepts for themselves and to help them see how these concepts can be applied to their lives. The knowledge and skills learned over a lifetime are being used to help prepare the next generation of mathematics teachers through the UTeach program.

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Associate Professor of Practice - Math Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: patricia.mendiola@utrgv.edu
EEDUC 2.527
Phone: (956) 318-2915

Tim Sears is a founding faculty member of the UTeach RGV Program and has taught or supported UTeach Step 1, Step 2, Knowing and Learning, Classroom Interactions, Project-Based Instruction, and Apprentice Teaching courses. He moved to the Rio Grande Valley as a Teach For America corps member. He worked in the nearby Weslaco Independent School District as a high school science teacher and then as a district-level administrator for secondary science and Advanced Placement® programs. He was the campus Teacher of the Year. He collaborated district-wide to improve science programs, secure grants, form local partnerships, and develop a student research program that led to awards at state and international science fairs. Mr. Sears believes that UTeach graduates should have a deep understanding of the content they teach, apply inquiry approaches to engage students, and use a range of strategies to assess and improve their students' learning.

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Associate Professor of Practice - Science Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: tim.sears@utrgv.edu
EEDUC 2.646
Phone: (956) 665-3208

Stacy Solis holds a Bachelor's degree in Biology and a Master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a focus in Secondary Science.  She taught in the Edinburg school district for 14 years.  After training in Edinburg, she worked as an independent science education consultant throughout the Rio Grande Valley.  As a consultant, she wrote a science curriculum, conducted science workshops, and worked with schools and districts to improve their science program and instruction.  As a UTeach Master Teacher, her goal is to assist future teachers in becoming skilled at creating and delivering inquiry-based lessons. 

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Associate Professor of Practice - Science Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: stacy.solis@utrgv.edu
EEDUC 2.654
Phone: (956) 665-3706

Liliana Trevino holds a Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics and a Master's Degree in Mathematics with an Emphasis in Education. She taught High School math at San Benito CISD for 7 years. Some of the courses she taught are: Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, Dual College Algebra, Pre-Calculus, and AP Calculus. As a Master Teacher of the UTRGV UTeach Program, she has helped, guided, and supported math majors to pursue the dream of becoming Mathematics Educators. One of her areas of expertise is the implementation of TI-Navigator in the mathematics classroom as a tool for inquiry-based lessons and student engagement.

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Associate Professor of Practice - Math Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: liliana.trevino@utrgv.edu
BLHSB 2.914A
Phone: (956) 882-6662

As a Master Teacher of the UTeach RGV Program from its inception, Gustavo Valencia has mentored many pre-service teachers and assisted in its formation. He has 16 years of secondary math teaching experience, 5 years as a Master Teacher, and holds a Bachelor’s and a Master’s Degree in Mathematics. Mr. Valencia has over 16 years of teaching experience in Harlingen ISD, teaching Algebra I and II, Geometry, College Algebra, Pre-Calculus, and Calculus.

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Associate Professor of Practice - Math Master Teacher
UTeach
Email: gustavo.valencia@utrgv.edu
BLHSB 2.914A
Phone: (956) 882-6662