Focus on TUSD - April/May 2008

Retiring Educators Leave Legacy of Dedication
Cindy Amundson was a Townsend Middle School teacher from 1977 until 1983, when she transferred to Booth-Fickett Magnet School, where she worked as a counselor/curriculum specialist until September 2003. She has been an assistant principal at Booth-Fickett until now.

Kathryn Church was a Project MORE library media specialist from 1986 until 1996, when she became a Rincon High School coordinator specialist. In 2000, she became the assistant princi8al. From 2006 until now, she has been a University High School assistant principal.

Miri Fleming was a GATE program bilingual teacher and coordinator of Gate minority recruiting from 1991 until 1994, when she was named the assistant director of bilingual exceptional Education. Since 2005, she has been a Wakefield Middle School assistant principal.

Yvonne Ramirez was a Wakefield Middle School teacher and dance instructor from 1974 until later that year when she transferred to Spring Junior High, where she was a teacher and coach. In 1978, she became a Maxwell Middle School teacher, volleyball, soccer track and softball coach. In 1987, she transferred to Cholla Magnet High School, where she was a counselor and coach. In 2000, she became the Hohokam Middle School assistant principal, and then went to Maxwell, where she held the same position. She was transferred to Sabino High School in 2003. She has been an assistant principal at Palo Verde Magnet High School since 2004.

Alice McBride was an ESL teacher/itinerant for the Bilingual Education Department and Blenman Elementary School and Cholla Magnet High School from January to December 1986. She taught ELD/Language Arts at Utterback Middle Magnet School until 1992, when she transferred to the Bilingual Education Department/Tucson High Magnet School as an ESL Curriculum Coordinator. From 1993-98, she was the assistant principal at Naylor Middle School. After that, she was the Myers-Ganoung principal until 2002, when she became the Naylor principal. Since 2006, she has been assistant principal at Sabino High School.

Joyce Geranis was a Wright Elementary School teacher from 1984-1993, when she was appointed the Collier Elementary School principal and resource specialist. In 1997, she became the Ford Elementary School principal. Since 2003, she has been the Collier Elementary School principal.

Carolyn Eldridge was a kindergarten through third-grade Duffy Elementary School teacher from 1971-1980. She worked with the TTE Elementary Program at the University of Arizona where she supervised student teachers and coordinated methods block and proseminar from 1987-1995. She was a project specialist until May 1997. That year in August, she became Cragin Elementary School principal, a post she held until 2000, when she became the Miles ELC principal.

Jeanne Herron was a student teacher at Bonillas Basic Curriculum Magnet School and Cragin Elementary School in 1975. She was a Vesey Elementary School fourth-grade teacher from 1975-79. The next year she was transferred to Fort Lowell Elementary School and Safford Magnet School as an ESAA language resource teacher. From 1981 to 1990, she taught at Roskruge Middle School. From 1990-94, she taught at Fort Lowell and was a principal designee. From 1994-95, she taught and was a student council sponsor at Valencia Middle School, where she was also a principal designee. In 1995, she became the assistant principal at Hohokam Middle School, where she stayed through 1998. She was transferred to Carson Middle School in 1998 as an assistant principal. She has been the Cavett Elementary School principal since August 1998.

Maria Cuesta-Patterson was a kindergarten teacher at Lawrence Middle School from 1971 to 1976. She because a Title I bilingual consultant serving all Title I schools from 1976-78. In 1986, she returned to TUSD as a Title I Bilingual Education resource teacher at C.E. Rose Elementary School in June 1988. In August of that year she was appointed principal of Hollinger Elementary School, a post she held until June 1997, when she was named the Wakefield Middle School Principal. In 2004, she was appointed as principal supervisor of Leadership Team #3.

Angela Julien has been a Rincon High School principal since August 2001.

Arthur DeFilippo was a language arts department consultant and a community services ombudsperson in 1986. During that school year, he was appointed principal of Jefferson Park Elementary School, a post he held until 1991. Since 2003, he has been the Davidson Elementary School principal.

Lisa Howells was a Safford Middle/Elementary School sixth-grade engineering teacher from 1993 through 2002. After that, she was an instructional tech integrationsepcialst until July of 2003, when she was appointed assistant principal at Sahuaro High School. She transferred to Rincon High School as an assistant principal in July 2005. In 2006, she was named the Wright Elementary School principal.

Photos in the April issue by Jes Ruvalcaba of Communications & Media Relations, unless otherwise noted.

The deadline to submit material for the May Focus is Friday, May 16. The Focus will be published Tuesday, May 27. Email submissions to Chyrl Hill Lander or Sharon Dunham in the Communications & Media Relations Department or use the online Tip Sheet.