Domain 5
(2023)

Self-Evaluation + Evidence

Each year at Charter,  I find different ways to engage in on-campus roles beyond being a teacher. I have been a middle school class advisor multiple times, the math club teacher mentor, and a chaperone on an international trip with colleagues and high school students. When I transitioned to PACT, I took on the role of Field Trip Coordinator, which meant I had to organize and communicate and connect with people in other organizations. Not only did I plan in-person field trips in 2019, by 2020 I was planning virtual field trips for PACT families during distance learning. We took a virtual trip to the zoo, the Dolphin Research Center, and Disneyland! The participation from families was so encouraging during those strange lockdown days.

I also taught the Leadership class at PACT, and reached out to Nicole Youell and Laura Breedlove from PFAA to get ideas for how to implement ASB activities at PACT, and build connections within the student body and families. In one year, Leadership put on a fall scavenger hunt around campus, a canned food drive, a toy drive with over 100 toys donated to the Stanford Settlement Group, a  middle school social, Project X movie night (after school), and formed “class buddies” with Ms. Mooney’s afternoon cooking class. I hadn’t ever led a Leadership class or club before, so I learned a lot as I went about keeping it student-centered while still providing inspiration and support for their big ideas.

This year I am the staff adviser for the Middle School Fashion Club at PFAA. It was started by four 7th graders at the end of first semester, and we have had a total of 5 meetings so far. The club is held every other Friday during WIN, but the student representatives meet once a week in my room to plan their activities and discuss things like fundraisers and promotions for the club. This is the first non-math club I have advised, and like Leadership I am learning how to support student-led groups, which is sometimes a hard task as a teacher. I am used to planning and leading activities, and I am still working very hard to be the “guide on the side.”

Finally, after a decade working solo on two NCS campuses, I am back at PFAA with my own child as a student. Watching her experience PFAA for herself has been so interesting and perspective-shifting. I am seeing PFAA in a new light as she continues her middle school journey and has my long-time friends and colleagues as her own teachers. She lights up when she talks about both the arts and academic classes. She helped out with our Family Math Night event, and we’ve gone to many show rehearsals together after school. She comes to my classroom after school and tells me all about her day and asks me about mine. I make an effort to give her her own space as she navigates middle school, but I am so thankful I took the opportunity to come back and experience being on campus with her.