News Releases
 December Employee of the Month:
Patti Vande Hey, Special Education Teacher, Gray M. Sanborn School
Like many teachers, Patti Vande Hey is exceptionally proud of her students’ accomplishments. The six students in her classroom, ranging in age from 5 to 8, are steadily learning and building on their skills despite their multiple disabilities.
“They are wonderful children,” she says enthusiastically. “They keep us enjoying their learning. They may learn in small steps, but we celebrate each accomplishment with great joy.”
“Patti has taken her MH (multiply handicapped) program to another level,” said her nominators. “She has spent countless hours preparing and executing engaging lessons to meet her students’ needs. She has single-handedly created an engaging curriculum that has encouraged a positive learning environment in her classroom. She is a leader to her assistants, guiding them through the implementation of lessons for her students.” Her nominators also praised Patti’s creation of an extensive buddy program. Each week, more than 100 students from Gray M. Sanborn’s regular classes visit her classroom or the “motor room” (where her students work on their motor skills and a variety of sensory experiences) to interact with Patti’s students, often giving up their own recess time to do so.
Patti has been with District 15 for seven years, two at Jane Addams and five at Sanborn. “I’ve taught in six other school systems, and this is the best,” she said. “We’re lucky we bought a house here.”
Patti earned her B.S. in elementary education from Virginia Commonwealth University and an M.Ed. in early childhood education, also from Virginia Commonwealth. She taught in Virginia, in both inner city and rural school systems; in the military school system in Germany; and in a Catholic school system in Las Vegas, where she taught gifted students. After moving to San Antonio, Texas, she noted a need for special education teachers, so she took graduate courses in special education at Southwest Texas State University.
“I didn’t think I would like it,” she remembers, “but the first time I walked into a classroom of children with multiple impairments, I knew it was right.” Last year, she earned certification from the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards as an exceptional needs specialist/severe and multiple disabilities.
Born into a military family, Patti also married a military man. Her husband Todd spent 28 years in the Air Force, and they moved 13 times to different states or out of the country. “You’ve got to love change,” she comments. Patti and Todd are the parents of three daughters, Jill, Kaley, and Jaime, and grandparents of Isabella. Patti enjoys traveling often with her husband, especially to Florida to see Isabella. She also loves to read.
“Patti has a heart of gold and her positive attitude is contagious,” her nominators said. Patti shrugs off the compliments. “I really love these kids,” she says simply.
Patti will be recognized at the December 14, 2005, Board of Education meeting, to be held at Walter R. Sundling Junior High School, at 7 p.m.
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