Herod’s Villien named top elementary teacher in Vermilion Parish

It’s nice to receive recognition for hard work, an idea with which Katie Cabrol Villien would not disagree.
Villien, a third grade teacher at Herod Elementary in Abbeville, has received her fair share of well-deserved recognition after recently being named the Vermilion Parish Elementary Teacher of the Year.
“I have encountered so many people who have congratulated me,” Villien said. “I work with amazing teachers, so to have been named Teacher of the Year at Herod was a big deal to me because I know how many amazing teachers there are here. Then to get it for the Parish was even bigger because there are incredible teachers in this Parish.
“It is humbling and really does feel good to be recognized for hard work.”
For Villien, 28, that effort would be there if she received zero recognition outside of her classroom.
“I have done this for six years,” Villien said of her time as a teacher. “I have worked night and day during those six years.
“This (award) was just a little added something, a little icing on the cake.”
Villien, a 2003 graduate of Abbeville High, has spent all of her six years at Herod. In fact, her time teaching at the school started before being hired full-time.
“I actually started here as a student teacher,” Villien said. “This is the only place I have ever worked. It’s a special place.
“It’s like home.”
Villien’s heart is certainly locked in at Herod.
“This is where I wanted to teach,” Villien said. “I loved it when I student-taught here. We want to do for these kids.
“We are working tirelessly for these kids.”
Villien credits those at the top for creating an atmosphere that is bringing the school in the right direction.
“It’s a testament to Mrs. Landry,” Villien said of Herod Principal Errin Landry. “She is working hard to improve the school and to make it a community.”
Landry, who served as a an assistant principal at Herod for three years before taking over this year as principal, said Villien plays an important role in the school.
“She’s a wonderful teacher,” Landry said. “She is very innovative and creative. She has a passion for these children. It is because of that passion that she goes that extra mile to find things that will work for all of her students. She takes the time to make sure each student gets what they need.
“She really is an excellent teacher.”
Villien worked with a group of fellow teachers during the summer to revamp the Positive Behavior System, a program that rewards students. She also started a Facebook page to promote the school.
“I started it to show people the positive things that are going on here,” Villien said. “When I put things on Facebook, I get really excited because people are going to see the good things we are doing.”
At the same time she uses modern, creative approaches to teaching, Villien falls back on one tried-and-true aspect.
“I am a strict teacher,” Villien said. “I have been since day one. The kids see the hard work you put in and they respect you for that and they love you for that.”
Villien doesn’t view the 18 students in her class simply as students.
“I have a family that I adore and want to spend time with,” Villien said, “but sometimes I have to come to school on a Sunday because those kids in my room are also my little family and I want what is best for them.”
Villien’s family has had an impact on her career.
“My mom is a teacher and my aunt is a teacher,” Villien said.
Her mother, Marilyn Cabrol, is a Pre-K teacher at 7th Ward Elementary. Villien’s aunt, Laura Lejune, is a teacher at Meaux Elementary. Lejune’s daughter, Julie, is student teaching at LeBlanc Elementary.
“We are a family full of teachers,” Villien said with a smile.
It was time spent in her mother’s class room prior to college that led Villien down the teaching path.
“I registered for college to go into nursing,” Villien said. “Over the summer I worked with her in her classroom. I was in her classroom one day and I said I want to be a teacher.”
While the family she grew up with affected her path, the family Villien goes home to each day, her husband Ted and their 2-year-old son Thomas, has a positive impact now that she is in a classroom.
“Ted is so supportive,” Villien said. “We call him the Herod Husband. He is always over here helping build things for my room and helping get the room ready.”
The youngest Villien has had his own effect.
“I feel like I am a totally different teacher since I became a parent,” Villien said. “You develop a different compassion.”
As for her passion for teaching, Villien’s remains strong. That is the case whether the awards come or not. In that regard, it is Herod’s success that most concerns Villien.
“I am really proud of this school and proud of how hard everyone is working,” Villien said. “I am proud of the improvements we are making and we hope our test scores are going to show it. We are trying our best to make that happen.
“For me, if we can raise our school scores, that would make this the best year ever.”