News Releases
March Employee of the Month: David Wojtalewicz, Winston Campus
Dave Wojtalewicz is in his fourth year of teaching eighth-grade learning disabled/behavior disorder students at Winston Campus. “He does an outstanding job day in and day out with the LD/BD eighth graders,” his nominator observed. “Dave teaches discipline and the total development of the challenged individuals.”
In his self-contained classroom, Dave currently has 16 students whose ability levels range from first grade to gifted. He teaches them all the core subjects: math, English, literature, science, and social studies. Despite the obvious challenges of his job, Dave—and his students—are thriving.
Dave came to District 15 after completing his bachelor’s degree in special education/learning disabilities and behavior disorders from Illinois State University. He’s currently working on his master’s degree in general education curriculum and instruction from Olivet Nazarene University and hopes to complete the program next summer. Reared in Mt. Prospect, Dave is a graduate of Hersey High School, where he played basketball, football, and baseball. Since his first year at Winston Campus, he’s coached track and cross country, and this year he took on the coaching of the school’s wrestling team, too.
In Dave’s family, teaching is the career of choice. His father, now retired, was a teacher in Chicago; his two brothers are teachers; his sister is currently student teaching; and he also has two uncles who are teachers. Dave was considering a career in law enforcement when he started college, but the summer after his first year, he worked as a counselor at a camp for children with disabilities. He found the experience challenging and rewarding and soon realized that he wanted to teach disabled children.
“Dave injects humor into this teaching style to keep the class in a ‘learning mode,’” his nominator said. Dave responds that he believes “the key to lasting a long time in special education is to laugh a lot. We have fun in class, and I get them moving around.” Dave credits his success with his students to others, praising his teacher assistant Tony Novak, other special education teachers at the school, and the Algonquin team. “Whenever I’ve had any questions or concerns, they’re there for me,” he says.
In his rare spare time, Dave enjoys hanging out with his friends, shooting hoops and playing 12-inch and 16-inch softball. He also stays physically active, working out and running.
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