Sonya Loughran, AP chemistry and chemistry research teacher at Colleyville Heritage High School, has been named the recipient of the 2024 Truman T. Bell Extraordinary Service Award.
The award recognizes a Texas teacher, sponsor or advocate of the Texas Science and Engineering Fair who has gone above and beyond their expected responsibilities in serving their constituents, community, colleagues and students. The award will be presented to Loughran at the Texas Science and Engineering Fair Advisory Board dinner Saturday, March 23, in the Texas A&M Conference Center and Hotel.
“I have loved science fair my entire life,” Loughran stated, who has been involved in the competition since she was in sixth grade. “To be recognized for encouraging students to be excited about and feel confident with science was really special for me.”
Loughran, however, didn’t begin her career as a science teacher. After graduating with a chemistry degree from the University of Texas at Arlington, she was working as a lab chemist. At the same time, she was teaching Sunday school. Realizing that she wanted to do something more, she remembers thinking that she really loved teaching kids and really loved science so she decided to pursue a teaching career.
“Some of my students will ask, ‘how can you love teaching after all these years?’” She replies that “the chemistry might be the same, but the students really all bring something special. In how many professions can you say that?”
Loughran brought her love of participating in science fair events to CHHS.
“For me, it was really fun to bring that in,” she stated.
Students have returned to tell her that science and participating in science fair has changed their path when they went to the university level because many have gone into research or received scholarships.
“It’s changed lives and that is what is really exciting.”
Read a related story about the record number of CHHS science students advancing to state competition.