Waltzing through the forest, pondering the vast expanse of the outdoors, wondering how nature and the world fit together, Paul Mata and his three siblings were curious from a young age and led by their father’s passion for them to explore.
Mata grew up in the small town of Weslaco, Texas. Born at home with a midwife, Mata grew up in a family where curiosity wasn’t just encouraged; it was a way of life.
“My dad would take us on hikes almost every weekend, not for any particular purpose but just to observe what was happening in the world around us,” Mata explained. “He encouraged us to listen to the birds, explore nature, check out the railroad tracks, and see how they were built. He’d share stories from his childhood, and those moments made us curious about the world and eager to travel and ask questions.”
Mata credits his parents for giving him the freedom to make his own observations and for instilling in him a dedication to learning and teaching. Ironically, this sentiment stuck with his siblings as well, as two of them decided to pursue a similar endeavor: becoming teachers.
His teaching career started 12 years ago in the Aldine Independent School District. Although Mata now teaches biology and chemistry, He did not start with these subjects.
“I started as a physics teacher, which is kind of funny because I didn’t really grasp the subject until university,” Mata admitted. “I had graduated with a biology degree and a biochemistry minor, so physics wasn’t my strength. But that experience taught me to prepare thoroughly. If a lesson didn’t make sense to me, I knew it might not work for my students either. I’d look for other ways to explain it until I had multiple approaches to reach every student.”
However, Mata’s stint teaching students in the Aldine Independent School District was cut short. Only a year later, he left due to conflicting perspectives with the district administration.
“[Many teachers] came together as a small team, and when the administration was rubbing everyone the wrong way, we decided as a team to all leave. It was a very hard decision, but without direct support [from the administration], it was one where we felt that our … health had to take precedence,” Mata explained.
With the help of his brother, Mata was able to pick up a teaching job in biology and physics back in his hometown of Weslaco. His involvement, however, evolved past that of a teacher.
“I actually became an administrator for the entire Weslaco Independent School District for all of the science programming from pre-K to seniors. It was four years directing every program of science, writing all of these semester exams and preparing [students] for STAAR. It was really intense,” Mata said.
After four years as an administrator, Mata felt he wanted to dedicate more of his time to his personal life.
“Family has always been my number one drive. When I was an administrator, I wanted to dedicate some time to starting a family,” Mata explained.
When the district refused to hire additional administrators to assist Mata with his work, he left, feeling that his drive to start a family trumped his rigorous duties as an administrator. Mata then moved to Dallas after the birth of his son to teach physics and biology anatomy.
“[Dallas] was cozy, we didn’t have to go anywhere else. My son was one year old. He didn’t need a ton of space or things to do. We played around at home and in parks, and he took his first steps there,” Mata said.
His son takes after Mata and his passion for the outdoors, mirroring the experiences Mata had when he was a child.
“He is so excited to do everything outside. When we walk outside to the car in the morning, we count how many flowers are awake … He likes to make lots of observations and do inventions and be a kid,” Mata said.
Just as Mata’s son grew into his own adventures, life took an unexpected turn. When Mata’s father received a cancer diagnosis during the COVID-19 pandemic, Mata spent no time debating whether to return home to take care of him. With this move came another teaching job, this time, in the South Texas Independent School District in Edinburg, Texas.
As Texas began reopening before vaccinations were widely available, Mata was yet again faced with a difficult decision concerning his job. With his father undergoing cancer treatment and a young child at home, he chose to prioritize their safety, leading him to La Feria ISD, which had stronger COVID protocols in place. Though his father passed away that year, Mata takes comfort in knowing they kept him safe from the pandemic until the end.
Needing more support to care for his child, Mata then moved to Houston where his sister and brother lived. This move led to another change in teaching roles, ultimately bringing him to CVHS to teach biology and chemistry.
At CVHS, Mata found himself drawn to the unique determination and energy of the student body. After teaching across various districts and even working as a school administrator, he was struck by something special at CVHS.
“There’s a lot of joy in the student body and curiosity and enthusiasm,” Mata reflected. “The dedication, the desire, the drive that’s always going to be useful and will make [CVHS students] successful anywhere [they] go. I have never seen it so concentrated, so prevalent, as when I talk to the student body and make observations around here at CVHS.”
Throughout his career, Mata sought to connect students with real-world applications of science, including facilitating conversations between students and astronauts about the International Space Station through NASA’s education programs. His deep enthusiasm for space exploration stems from his belief in humanity’s future past Earth.
“I don’t think there’s a future without exploring outside of this planet,” Mata said. “And any progress that we can make in that way, whether it’s just learning about how that works, or making a better way to travel or better medicine to keep us well … works really cool.”
Mata’s passion for space and the progression of humanity reflects his hopes to reach all students meaningfully through his teaching style. He firmly believes that all students have the opportunity to succeed, and he uses his hands-on teaching style to help students discover their own passions.
“Every student who comes in, I want to be one of the [teachers] who listens to them, finds out their dreams, goals, and interests, and hopefully connects it to our subject teaching so they can gain a foothold in that area as they go on.”
