News Releases
December Employee of the Month: Kara Marks
Early Childhood Social Worker, The Learning Academy
Making connections with children is Kara Marks’ job, and it’s one that she truly loves. Kara actively and creatively engages the students she works with, getting down on the classroom floor to play with them or using her puppet companions, Sally, Sammy, Mr. Purple, and Doogie the Dog, to create a safe, comfortable environment for them.
Kara regularly interacts with dozens of children ages 3–6 in early childhood classes at The Learning Academy (TLA). She also has one section of early childhood kindergarten at Central Road School. At TLA, she’s involved with the school’s self-contained, cross-categorical classrooms; with children in the Peer Integration Program (PIP) which links special needs children with typically developing children of the same age; and the Friends classroom, which houses 10 special needs children with 20 at-risk students from the Early Childhood Development Enrichment Center (ECDEC) program.
“Recreational and social activities can help children learn to deal with social issues,” Kara says. She’s developed thematic units that support those goals, including “how-to” lessons on greeting friends, asking for help, asking to play, sharing, and even personal hygiene. Often using puppets to present the lessons, Kara follows up with more play. “The children need an opportunity to practice and develop their skills, so my puppets and I play with them and model the appropriate behavior.”
This is Kara’s seventh year with District 15 and her second at TLA. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, she originally aspired to be an occupational therapist, but after doing some volunteer work with children, she explains, “I fell in love with the mission of social work.” She earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology and social work from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, as well as a certification in criminal justice. Her master’s degree is from the University of Kansas in social work administration and school social work. While in Kansas, she worked for two counties in birth to age 3 programs and later in the state’s court system. When she came to the district as its first full-time early childhood social worker, she supported early childhood kindergarten programs at various schools across the district.
“Kara works hard to deliver quality services to all children in the Early Childhood Program at The Learning Academy,” said her nominator. “She actively supports the teachers, giving of herself and her time to provide solutions for individual students. She is a resource to parents and teaches parenting workshops. Kara is a valued team member who meets challenges well.”
Kara lives in Chicago, where she is enthusiastically tackling repairs on her townhouse. She collects puppets and marionettes and makes porcelain dolls. Although she is single and has no children, Kara admits that her house “looks like a place for a child to be.” She enjoys traveling, and the last two summers has chaperoned groups of 50-60 high school students on trips to Israel and Italy. She works part-time for an international Jewish youth group which does recreational, social, and community service projects. She also likes to paint, mostly acrylics done in abstract style. Next summer she’s taking on a new challenge—she will participate in the Avon three-day walk for breast cancer, walking from Kenosha, Wis., to Chicago.
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