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Hometown
McLean, Virginia

Degrees and schooling
Bachelor of Arts in English (Pre-Education & Creative Writing) Minor in Leadership and Social Change, Virginia Tech
Masters of Arts in the Teaching of English, Teachers College, Columbia University

Division you teach
Middle Grades

Years of teaching experience
9 years with 4 years at Avenues

Describe your teaching philosophy
I believe students learn best when they grapple with material through multiple, diverse learning modalities, as this allows them to develop nuanced insights on the topic. Specifically, I have learned that collaboration among the Humanities department is crucial to student learning and growth. For example, instead of just learning about the Holocaust in history class through a teacher’s lecture, class discussion, or textbook excerpt, students need to read about it in English class through Josef’s words in Refugee by Alan Gratz, a novel about three childrens’ search for refuge. Students need to engage in a silent gallery walk on Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, in order to see the images of destroyed property that night. They need to read first-hand stories about those who lived during that time period and engage in dialogue over whose right is it to share and embody such stories, exploring whether we can give justice to such events through our own imagination and perspective work. This intersectionality helps students view topics and people, both in events and novels, as multifaceted and complex, enabling students to create their own informed opinions along the way.

How is Avenues' approach to teaching and learning different from other schools that you've worked in?
A lot of schools emphasize collaboration, but Avenues is the first school I've been at that actually provides the time and space for it.

How would you describe Avenues students?
Energetic and excited to learn.

How is Avenues preparing students for an uncertain future?
Having Crew allows us the time and flexibility to talk to our students about current events and ways to make a difference in age-appropriate ways that feel right to our group of students.

Neighborhood
Chelsea

Current grade(s) of your children
Small World 2s, Kindergarten, Grade 2 & 5

Language Track
Mandarin

Languages spoken at home
English, French

Why did you choose Avenues?
Language immersion, no fundraising, the integration of technology into the curriculum, adaptive nature of the school— they’re willing to change if needed.

Favorite thing about Avenues
The community, the language program, teachers are strong and they love kids!

College/University
Cornell University

College major/minor
Computer Science

Year you graduated from Avenues
2020

How did Avenues prepare you for college?
Prior to attending Avenues, I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in computer science. Nevertheless, I was unsure of the type of work I would like to do. Avenues provided me with the opportunity to explore potential careers through interdisciplinary projects that merged my interests with the school curriculum. This resulted in an immersive experience that taught me that it is possible to apply my passions in so many different settings.

What is the most valuable skill you developed at Avenues?
I can safely say that the most valuable thing I have developed from my time at Avenues is the confidence to network with others. In 10th grade, I was part of the Mastery Learning System (MLS) where I conducted research on video game development in order to create a game by the end of the year. To my surprise, this was an extremely rigorous process that did not only require knowledge in programming, but also in storytelling, art, and music. It would have been incredibly difficult to embark on this journey by myself, so I had to reach out for help. With the help of my teacher, Mr. Gutkowski, I drafted an email to an Avenues parent asking them for guidance. I was once again surprised at the fact that I actually received an email back and even more so upon reading that they would be happy to help out. I am extremely grateful for all the help I received and don't know what I would have done without it.

Most impactful or memorable experience you had at Avenues?
Participating in Global Journeys to study environmental sustainability in Uruguay (9th grade) and astronomy/indigenous rights in Hawaii (11th grade).

#1 reason you'd recommend Avenues?
The diverse curriculum.

Three words you’d use to describe Avenues
Innovative, adaptive, inclusive.

College/University
University of St Andrews

Grade started at Avenues
4

Language track
Mandarin

Academic interests
Physics, mathematics, chemistry.

Extracurricular involvements
Spice Club, Asian Awareness, Student Ambassador, International Student Council.

Memorable project, assignment, or experience
In 10th grade, I went on a trip to Shenzhen, China as a part of the Mastery Academy. With students from the São Paulo campus, my team designed and built a 3D printer from scratch.

Favorite Avenuess tradition
Days of Seniors.

Three words you’d use to describe Avenues
Adventurous, novel, fun.

College/University
The University of Chicago

College major/minor
Philosophy

How did Avenues prepare you for college?
Avenues has given me a toolbox that I will take with me for the rest of my life. From the skills I acquired over my four years at Avenues, I feel confident in my ability to tackle any problems that come my way.

What did you enjoy most about being part of the Avenues community?
There were many aspects of the Avenues community that made me deeply enjoy being apart of it. I think most notable were the diversity of passions within the Avenues student body and faculty that I did not fully appreciate until now being in college. Even if you were not in class, learning occurred, whether it be in the hallways or at lunch, due to the variation of passions among students I could always depend on hearing about something from a peer.

Neighborhood
Harlem

Grade of child
Grade 3

Language track
Mandarin

Languages spoken at home
French, English

Why did you choose Avenues?
We were excited about Avenues' forward-thinking, innovative and global approach to education. The opportunities for Chinese language immersion and STEM learning were of particular interest. We felt these could play a critical role in preparing our child for the world of the future.

Favorite thing about Avenues
Some of our favorite things about Avenues are the small class sizes, student-teacher ratio, and the educators' ability to build a class community culture centered on the bolstering of student's sense of self-agency.

Describe Avenues in three words
Forward-thinking, self-reflective, responsive.

Neighborhood
Current grade(s) of your children
Grade 5 & Grade 9

Language Track
Spanish

Languages spoken at home
English, Arabic, French

Why did you choose Avenues?
We really liked the global nature of the school. The bi-lingual program combined with challenging academics is a true asset.

Favorite thing about Avenues
The community of families is great.

Three words you’d use to describe Avenues
Global, inclusive, high-tech.

Neighborhood
Chelsea

Current grade of your child
Grade 6

Previous school before Avenues
Montessori at Flatiron

Language Track
Mandarin

Languages spoken at home
English, Korean

Why did you choose Avenues?
We believe in the power of bilingual education - it adds depth and complexity to the child’s thoughts and perspectives.

Favorite thing about Avenues
Bilingual education; Dr. Glazer’s 3rd-grade math club; constructive parent community; school’s thoughtful and effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Three words you’d use to describe Avenues
Global, innovative, caring.

Neighborhood
Downtown Manhattan

Current grade of your child
Grade 7

Language Track
Spanish

Languages spoken at home
English

Why did you choose Avenues?
We loved Avenues for many reasons, but our daughter is LatinX and so the Spanish immersion sealed the deal.

Favorite thing about Avenues
Our daughter's experience in the classroom has been consistently phenomenal, year in and year out.

Three words you’d use to describe Avenues
Impressive, comprehensive, caring.

College/University
Boston College

Neighborhood
Downtown Manhattan

Previous school
Knightsbridge School

Grade started at Avenues
5

Language track
Spanish

Academic interests
Humanities, Spanish, sciences, art.

Extracurricular involvements
Avenues Ambassadors, Student Council, Food and Hunger Advocacy Club, Model UN, International Student Council, Tennis

#1 reason I’d recommend Avenues
The community of kind, welcoming, and driven students and faculty.

Favorite Avenues tradition
The World's Fair.

Three words you’d use to describe Avenues
Open, global-minded, innovative.

Neighborhood
Queens

Current grade of your child
Grade 10

Previous school before Avenues
PS 118- Brooklyn

Language Track
Mandarin

Languages spoken at home
English

Why did you choose Avenues?
We chose Avenues because on the tour my son felt welcomed by the students. We loved the world and language focus. It felt right from the moment we stepped into the building.

Favorite thing about Avenues
The teachers and staff!

Three words you’d use to describe Avenues
Welcoming, innovative, flexible.

College/University:
Stanford University

Major:
Political Science

Plans for after graduation:
Public office

How did Avenues prepare you for college?
Avenues taught me to always be open-minded and flexible in whatever I did. This is something that has helped me a lot so far this year as a college freshman.

What is the most valuable skill you developed at Avenues?
Definitely my discussion skills! By being encouraged to voice my opinions in my classes, I learned how to synthesize and express my thoughts in an effective way.

What did you enjoy most about being part of the Avenues community?
The unconditional support from faculty, staff, and peers who wanted to see me succeed in anything that I pursued.

Favorite thing about Avenues
The wide array of opportunities that extend outside of the classroom, such as the Mastery program, Global Journeys trips, 5th Term, and club experiences.