LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Angie Morales was nominated by a family member, Aaron Morales.

Motivated and passionate are two words that describe Mrs. Morales. She has been in the education field since 2001. Before she started teaching, she would help the people in her community complete their immigration papers and income taxes and would not charge them, especially if they were senior citizens. In 2003, she returned to school to earn her Bachelor's degree.

"My little sister and I were anxious about her going to school. When she finished her Bachelor's, she started to teach middle school, and after four years, she earned her Master's degree from the University of Texas in El Paso and began her counseling career in 2009," said Mr. Morales. "I can see her passion in everything she does, and she is very involved in helping the community and students."

Mrs. Morales worked as an elementary and all-district-only school counselor in Tornillo for five years. Then, she became a school counselor in Socorro Independent School District for six years. She decided to move from the elementary school level to high school at Montwood High School, where she pushed every single student under her caseload to graduate. She achieved a 100% student graduation rate for two years.

Then, Mrs. Morales moved to a small district where she is now the District At Risk and Counselor Coordinator. She has been working and pushing students to finish their high school education this school year. The dropout and graduation rates weren't great, but she took over to help the high school when their school counselor left the district and pushed all the seniors to reach the goal of graduating. Out of 81 students, all but one graduated.

"I haven't seen any other individual care so much for her Tornillo community to be successful. She is always looking for ways to bring new programs and implement them. Last year, she also had a Girls Only program where she volunteered to help the teenagers at the middle school. She's not only involved at work, but also at church. She gives presentations outside of school in the community," said Mr. Morales.

She is an inspiration to everyone that she crosses paths with. She cares for her family and for anyone that seeks help. This year, she decided on her own to donate to the immigrants in El Paso and offered to volunteer too. Mrs. Morales earned her second Master's degree in Administrator Leadership in 2014 and still pushes anyone she knows to continue their education.

"She has done much more, so much that I will probably not finish writing about her. I can attest that she does everything while being humble and believing in every kid. She implemented a mentor and mentee program in her district, too," said Mr. Morales. "The best way to describe her is that she has an open heart and is always willing to help everyone around her."