To celebrate the amazing people that contribute to the success of students at each public charter school, school leaders and staff are giving a shout out to some of the people that help make their school a great place.
DC Public Charter School Board
Random Acts of Kindness Week
To celebrate the amazing people that contribute to the success of students at each public charter school, school leaders and staff are giving a shout out to some of the people that help make their school a great place.
Achievement Prep's Elementary Campus would like to recognize Megan Paen for her phenomenal work as one of our second grade lead teachers. Ms. Paen is the embodiment of respect, on our of core values. She has built respectful relationships with our scholars, which has led to them showing more respect with each other in both academic and social settings. Ms. Paen has also taken on more and more leadership responsibilities and has been a valuable thought partner with the school leadership team in thinking of ways to continue to recognize the hard work and achievements of her colleagues and scholars. As someone who is always showing kindness to our teachers, scholars and families, Ms. Paen is an excellent example of what we expect from our Platinum Teachers at Achievement Prep!
We are so grateful for Michael Cordell, the founding principal of The Learning Center at KIPP DC! The Learning Center serves students in grades PK4 through 8 whose Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) indicate that they require specialized instruction and related services in a full-time setting outside of general education. Michael’s unwavering commitment to our mission and belief in each and every one of our students inspires us every day. He is the perfect balance of warmth, patience, and leadership, and he is taking our Special Education students to new heights. Thank you, Michael!
The Center City Public Charter School's Brightwood school community would like to thank and celebrate our social worker, Abby Thompson, for the amazing work she does every day. The first half of the school year, Ms. Thompson spent an incredible amount of time working with our 8th graders on high school placement. Ms. Thompson is the epitome of Center City's values of character, excellence and service. She goes above and beyond to meet student and staff needs every single day. We appreciate her so much and want everyone to know it!
We would like to shout out four Capital City PCS students who came to shovel the snow along the sidewalks adjacent to our school during the snowstorm. It was their idea to do it and they worked for four hours! Students: Jessica Luna, 10th grader, Emersson Palacios, 10th grader, Edwin Zelaya, 11th grader, Karina Morales, 10th grader, Starkim Holmes, 9th grader
A huge shout out to Claudia Luna and Alba Beltran, the two LAMB PCS teachers who have been with the school since we opened our doors to students in 2003. Since the beginning, they have been committed to the vision of educating a new generation of kids. More than twelve years later they remain passionate about LAMB’s mission. Claudia is a native of Guatemala and over the years has ensured that her students always have a prepared environment where student learning is top priority. Alba started a teacher’s assistant the first year LAMB opened. A native of El Salvador, has brought much love into the classroom ensuring that her students have a nurturing environment allowing them to develop academically, socially, and emotionally. The first students that Claudia and Alba taught at LAMB are now in high school and each and every year past students return to visit these special teachers. LAMB salutes Ms. Alba and Ms. Claudia for their commitment to LAMB and their continued years of service!
We are proud to call Christina Marino a member of our Capital City PCS staff. Her ability to meet the needs of all students is exemplary. She works tirelessly to ensure everyone has what he or she need regardless of personal sacrifice. One of Christina’s greatest strengths is around developing independent thinkers and ensuring all 8th grade students are not only ready for high school but are also ready to succeed and achieve. One student said, “Ms. Marino won’t accept my work unless it’s 100% correct. One day she sat with me for 2 hours while I worked on my research project. She never gave me the answer but she always let me know I could do it.” She is a reflective practitioner who constantly strives to refine her skills. Her desire to ensure that all students have equal access to the curriculum is indispensable. We couldn’t imagine our school community not having Christina apart. Christina Marino is not just a teacher… she’s an educator.
Ms. Shona Maher is our Homeless Liaison and is an active participant on our Family School Association at Sela PCS. Ms. Shona also coordinates our Fun Fridays once a month and our Student of the Month events. She also supports our student recruitment events and Open Houses, and steps in wherever needed. She is truly a gem and an asset to our school. We appreciate you, Ms. Shona!
We want to send a big shout out to Rhea Vaflor, a LAMB PCS mother, who is an excellent representative and has consistently supported us in our classes and a variety of other aspects in our school.
A big shout out to Betsy Romero at LAMB's Missouri Avenue building! She does a great job of handling 1,000+ responsibilities with a smile on her face. She is a pleasure to work with and her co-workers sincerely value her as both a colleague and friend.
Tuesday Hence is the Lead Residential Counselor at the Maya Angelou Learning Center. The residential team provides safe, structured, supportive, and nurturing home environments for approximately 10% of our students at Maya. Tuesday and her team ensure that all of their essential needs are met at "The Resi" which offers them every opportunity to be successful in school and beyond. Her warm demeanor is complimented by a bright and gracious smile, which has won over all of the students in The Resi, who affectionately call her Ms. Tuesday. From her own words: “My grandmothers and my mother instilled the "kindness" trait in me, and they also taught me the importance of being a strong woman. It genuinely gives me pleasure when I'm able to brighten someone else's day...It's important for me to model a healthy balance between kindness and firmness: an important lesson for all of my students.”
The Next Step Public Charter School would like to celebrate Random Acts of Kindness Day by recognizing staff member and alumnus, Jose Reyes for braving the Blizzard of 2016 to remove all of the snow from around our school building on the first day, thereby ensuring a speedy return to business after the storm, neighborhood safety on a busy pedestrian corner and, most important, a safe space for our students, staff, and visitors to return to. Thank you, Jose! From the entire staff of The Next Step Public Charter School!!!
Ms. Denice Speed has been a student at Community College Prep PCS since its opening. Not long after she completed orientation, she came to the Director of Operations and said, “the staff here is so kind I would like to do a little something for them. I’d like to just leave a little fruit”. Sure enough, a fruit basket appeared in the staff lounge. Ever since that first surprise, occasional treats will appear for staff and whether its homemade cookies or a holiday fruit basket, there are regular appearances of her secret pal treats. Ms. Speed’s quiet acts of thoughtfulness remind all of us why we do what we do and encourages staff to pass the kindness forward.
Washington Yu Ying PCS would like to acknowledge our Duty Aide, Ida Santana. Ms. Santana, as she is known here, never lets a community member go without a good morning and a hug. She works throughout every department to help in any way possible: bringing you an extra piece of fruit or a cup of coffee, settling down upset children, keeping the staff room fully stocked, and simply bringing her positive energy with her. Ms. Santana is always open to feedback about how she can help enhance the instructional culture and overall school culture and is passionate about working with students.
Washington Yu Ying PCS would like to give a loud shout out to our Facilities Supervisor, Sergio Velasquez. Although Sergio always works hard to keep our campus safe, clean and secure, he went above and beyond during the recent Snowzilla snowstorm. When our snow removal company said it would need special machinery to even get onto campus, Sergio made his way to campus and hand shoveled the entrance. This is typical of Sergio. He always is willing to come in early or stay late to get the job done. One of Sergio’s biggest challenges is trying not to disturb the classes when he comes in to fix something, as so many of the kids love to say hello to “Mr. Sergio.”
Ms. Robinson works at AppleTree's Lincoln Park campus as a Pre-K Teacher's Assistant and Campus Rep for Family Literacy Events. From leading family literacy events to planning field trips, Ms. Robinson is always willing to step in and do what is needed to add an extra layer of pizzazz to campus events. To celebrate this week, we would like to let Ms. Robinson know that she is valued and appreciated!
Washington Yu Ying PCS would like to give a big thank you to our Chinese Program Support staff member, Yu Zhou. Yu Zhou sets the bar high when it comes to multitasking. He ensures that his work supports teachers and students whether he is a sub or an extra Chinese language expert in the classroom. In addition, he contributes to many extracurricular activities, including being an active member of the Chinese Cultural Committee. Yu Zhou also leads fun Chinese lessons for staff and parents. His helpfulness, hard work, and flexibility are very much appreciated! Xie! Xie!
Amponsah Nkansah works for AppleTree Public Charter School as a School Leadership and Data Specialist. Amponsah's approach and commitment to Early Childhood Education is second to none. AppleTree Early Learning PCS is much better because of her dedication to students and teachers. The qualities that she embodies are consistently aligned with our core values. She is appreciated for all of her hard work, determination and grit. Moreover, she displays an instructional expertise and ability to get teachers and leaders to excel. It is more than a pleasure to take this educational journey with her as a colleague.
Ms. Gonzalez at Paul PCS is always there if you need her for something. She is committed and dedicated to her kids and will do anything for them, as well as anything that will help kids that aren't hers. Ms. Gonzalez comes from a place of yes. Yes, I will find out the answer. Yes, I will advocate for you. Yes, I will give up many Saturday's for recruitment. Yes, Yes, Yes! Even with her multitude of other responsibilities, Gonzalez has supported 8th Grade scholars covering classes and holding kids accountable at every turn. She's an amazing asset to our organization and the scholars on the 8th grade team.
Justice is a second grade student from the Garifuna community at LAMB PCS. I started working with him this school year as his math specialist. I really want to thank him for his hard work and commitment. His first words when I met him were: “I am not good in math.” With a smile and my passion for math I explained to him that math is part of our daily life. Street signs are all about geometry, when we buy in a grocery store, we need to add, subtract, multiply and divide. When we cook we need to know measurement conversions, fractions, proportions and decimals. Sometimes it is not easy to apply those concepts but with practice and motivation we can all succeed. Now he is more confident and we both enjoy working together. He already is proficient in operations and algebra and his self-esteem is growing. Math like any other subject either language and art is part of our life and we need to learn how to enjoy it the same way as PE, music and any other activity that we love to practice.
E.L. Haynes would like to thank our amazing maintenance team for Random Acts of Kindness Day! Mr. Reynaldo Paniagua, aka Mr. P, has been with E.L Haynes for 10 years, since our school was just getting underway. He started out as a volunteer, helping to serve students breakfast and made his way to working with us as our full-time maintenance manager. We were fortunate enough to have Mr. P bring on board his brother Silvestre, and sister-in law, Maria. The three of them consistently go above and beyond to keep our schools safe and up to date. We are extremely lucky to have them on the Haynes team!
New to Cesar Chavez PCS, Daniel Gagliano has an energy that is contagious and perfectly fit for 9th grade!! As he's preparing students for National History Day, he is taking time to make sure he is prepared by asking for help from his colleagues. We are excited to have him as a part of our team and know his hard work will lead to great leaps for students!!
Chelsea Rink at Cesar Chavez PCS has gone above and beyond to ensure Juniors at Chavez Schools have a successful year!! In addition, she has taken steps to ensure the 11th grade team of teachers, many who are new to the system, feel supported. Her efforts are creating strong bonds between teachers and students, which greatly improves student achievement. Great work, Chelsea!!
Sam Bush is a Government/History teacher at the Cesar Chavez Capitol Hill campus. He is a first year teacher from the Capitol Teaching Residency. He has done a magnificent job working with our students and shown amazing flexibility with teaching one of our signature courses, Junior and Senior Thesis. This is a demanding class for veteran educators, but Sam has been brave enough to take it on as a rookie. Kudos to Mr. Bush-Joseph!
Dr. Maria Dean is a constant supporter and advocate for our school and students. She has the highest expectations for everyone she comes across and it pushes all of us to get better on a daily basis. Although she can't be here everyday, my kids know how much she cares about them!
We want to shout out Stephanie Remick and Erik Jones at Cesar Chavez PCS for their hard work developing and integrating public policy curriculum and experiences for our students. They work tirelessly with students, teachers, leadership, and partner organizations to ensure that the mission of our schools is at the forefront of everyone's work.
