Kinder -2nd Shannon Papacosta

My name is Shannon Papacosta and I am excited to serve as your K-2nd ELD teacher! I am a homeschooling mom and I have been an educator for the past 23 years. My background includes roles such as a classroom teacher, ELD teacher/coordinator, Master Teacher (supporting new teachers), Vice Principal, & Part-time Lecturer at Chapman University where I taught a literacy course to students in the credential/Masters program. I deeply value students' multilingualism and take great pride in celebrating their achievements as they develop proficiency in both English and their native languages. I firmly believe that students' home languages should be respected and preserved, and I actively encourage them to maintain and strengthen their oral and literacy skills in their native language while advancing their English language development. My husband and I have been married for 10 years. We have a son (also a CPA student) who will be in 3rd grade this year. As a family, we love biking, hiking, and spending time outdoors. 

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3rd - 5th Dawn Gatchalian

My name is Dawn Gatchalian and I'm a mom of three loving children, ranging from ages 12 to 22! My passion is cooking and music. I am first generation student whose parents and four older siblings immigrated to the States, in 1972. I am excited to be an ELD teacher for our school! I've taught English Learners since 2009 in brick-and-mortar classrooms and as a Homeschool Teacher. I also taught ELD classes for adults, at community college for about a year. My goal is to support English Learners to feel confident and to have fun learning in English, by giving them tools and strategies that have helped my students in the past, and myself when I was a young English Learner, too.

6th - 8th Lourdes Ornelas

My name is Lourdes Ornelas and I am an HST and an ELD teacher. I have enjoyed working in an independent learning environment for 16 years. Prior to that, I worked in a regular brick and mortar school for 7 years. I was also fortunate enough to have homeschooled my own children through high school. I look forward to working with English Learner students to help them learn and achieve their goals.   

9th-12th Paty Romero

My name is Miss Romero. My students often refer to me as Miss Paty, Miss Romero, or Maestra! I am a fluent native Spanish speaker with a passion to help students reach their full potential with love, care, patience, and understanding. I have been an educator for 16 years and have experience working with English Language Learners, Special Education, and Academically Struggling students. Having personally experienced the journey as an English Language Learner I know it can be a challenge, but with hard work and dedication, we will get there