Quarter 2 – Vanessa Reyes

Position: TPI Instruction

Years of Service:4 years with D91 and many more outside of District

Education: Vanessa received her early Childhood Certificate from Kendal, with Special Ed Approval and is currently working on her Masters from University of St. Francis

Special Interests: Enjoys traveling and dancing

Reason for being spotlighted: Vanessa regularly works with the families of her students, including helping them learn English, connecting them with computer access (hers or the library’s), helping them with resumes and job applications… the list goes on, and these things happen regularly. She doesn’t limit this work to school hours, either.

In school, she always works with students in addition to her caseload, including volunteering her room as a break room for struggling students. She always keeps in close contact with teachers so she can keep her work tied closely to the classroom curriculum, while working on English language skills. She offers valuable interventions at IDM meetings, as well.

She is incredibly positive and that spreads to others both as part of our PBIS team and just as a presence in the building. She is great about publicly recognizing other staff’s achievements and pointing out the improvements she sees in children (both hers and not hers). She also shares cultural information that can be helpful for teachers working with a diverse populations.

She knows what she’s doing with every child in this school, and takes the time to get to know the needs in the building so she can lend a hand when it’s needed, without anyone having to ask.