43yrs

female

Speaks English, Italian

For the last year, I have worked as a paraprofessional in the Special Education Department at a local high school. My job duties have included both one-on-one job skills work with a 17-year-old boy with autism and also in class work focusing on social skills and job training with other students. In class, I worked with students with Down's Syndrome, autism, and Intellectual Disabilities of various sorts. I also worked with some students who used technology to communicate. During this last year, I have really developed a passion for working with and advocating for this population, and outside work I also took the time to volunteer at the Special Olympics and also to be a volunteer with the local Peer Buddies after-school program for students in special education classes at the High School. During my year in Vermont studying for my Master's, I began to really gravitate towards working with students with various disabilities. Now that I have a year of experience working as an assistant teacher (paraprofessional) in Special Education, I am strongly considering pursing licensing as a lead Special Education teacher. In addition to my professional experience, I think it is also important to note that I have a number of disabled individuals in my family (e.g. autism, paralysis, diabetes) which gives me a unique sense of compassion and understanding.