learning and thinking to executive functioning issues and conscious discipline, Dawn would integrate everything she continued to learn to help shape her classroom and develop her students. “She connects with kids. She sees them for who they are, because she sees their value, their intrinsic value,” Anne said. “It’s just that level of trust and relationship, which is very much the core of The Parish Way, that gives her such a springboard into building skills. But I think it just starts with the relationship that she's able to build quickly.” The way she poured into and invested in her students was evident to Becca Alcala, who was Dawn’s paraeducator this past year. Not every day was the same, and Dawn adapted and made an exciting learning experience. “Dawn really teaches you the value of connections and relationships with each kid and how to nurture it,” Becca said. “She creates this familiarity that makes you feel like you're working with someone who treats you with such kindness and patience just as she would with a kid and each student that walks in.” Dawn embraced her creativity, and all of her students would come to realize that they weren’t just learning, but also, having fun. This was all intentional; Dawn wanted to make kids want to come to school. “My whole goal is for them to have fun, to love coming to school, love learning something new or figuring something out,” Dawn said. “So hopefully that's what they remember is that Dawn's class was fun.”
change. The newly-renamed Carruth Center needed a director, so she assumed the role while also seeing clients, all while working part-time. She held the title for nearly two years but realized that the director role was one that required someone to work full-time. She continued seeing clients and started working Carruth’s Language Development Class (LDC) and Emerging Language for a few years.
By the time Rendon was old enough to attend middle school, Dawn was ready to go back to teaching full-time.
“I wanted more,” Dawn said. “I like to be challenged. I'd like to be continually challenged.” Dawn’s Dinosaurs Dawn returned to Parish’s Early Childhood program, this time as the teacher for the Dinosaurs, which is symbolic to her because “every year is different, and there was a lot that needed to change.” The Dinosaurs became synonymous with Dawn. That classroom embraced each student, giving them a safe space to learn and grow.
It was noticed early on by Parish Head of School Anne Powers when she came in for an interview a decade ago.
“I just remember thinking how fun the classroom felt and how warm that it felt,” Anne said. “I was completely impressed with the quality of therapy and how naturalistic it was, but also, and how child directed it was, and how intentional it was at the same time.”
Throughout the course of her career, Dawn has had to learn and adapt, as education was always evolving. Ranging from social emotional
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