Meet Our 2023-2024 Action Advisory Board!

_{Sharisse Alexander}

_{East Union Middle School · Marshville, NC
English Language Arts Teacher, 6th grade}

_{Years teaching: 10 years} 

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: the Paired Texts “Nugget Nation” and “Mac and Cheese Mania” because my students are always engaged and fascinated about the beginnings of their favorite foods.}

_{The best part about being a teacher is: seeing my students grow academically and mature over time.}

_{Favorite hobby: Swimming}

_{Stephany Carmical}

_{North Little Rock High School · Little Rock, AR
Speech Language Pathologist, 9-12th grade}

_{Years teaching: 20 years} 

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: “I Survived a Bear Attack” because my students love the excitement and are glued to the content as the events are re-told. It is a great story to use for critical thinking and problem solving in discussion about what they would do in the situation.} 

_{The best part about being a teacher is: helping students build self-confidence.} 

_{Fun fact about me: I love scary stories (fiction and nonfiction) and find that students plug in most when a story has excitement and suspense.}

_{Shawna Davenport}

_{Northridge Middle School · Middlebury, IN}

_{English Language Arts Teacher, 7th grade}

_{Years teaching: 27}

_{My favorite Action stories to teach are :“Frozen Dreams,” “Roberto the Great,” “The Man Who Has Saved Millions,” and “From Out of this World. . .to Under the Sea” because these stories teach about “unsung heroes” who did not get the credit they deserved. My students are inspired by these true stories each year and feel passionate about discovering other people who weren’t given credit at the time for their contributions to society because of their gender, race, cultural background, or religious beliefs.} 

_{The best part about being a teacher is: when students have those “aha!” moments and have to dig deeper to really analyze information in their reading and writing, personal beliefs, and perspectives, and they find out they can agree to disagree in a respectful manner.} 

_{Favorite hobbies: I love to kayak and walk or bike nature trails. I’m an avid reader, and I love to knit and gourmet cook.}

_{Sally Doulton}

_{Manhasset/Great Neck EOC · Glen Head, NY
Reading Intervention Specialist, 4-12th grade}

_{Years teaching: 36 years} 

_{My favorite Action stories to teach are:  the True Teen stories because the featured teens inspire my students to become the best version of themselves.} 

_{The best part about being a teacher is: the impact I can have on my students’ lives as they develop their academic skills and emotional intelligence.} 

_{Fun fact about me: My personalized license plate reads SWIMGIRL because I love swimming. So, if you see “SWIMGIRL“ on the road, you can give me a friendly honk and wave!}

_{Caroline Hazelton}

_{Miami Community Charter School · Florida City, FL 
ESL Teacher, 6-9th grade}

_{Years teaching: 9 years}

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: "The Boy Who Fought Hitler." There is so much evil in the world and teenagers feel like they cannot do anything as youth, but then they are reminded of a young person who did. We then try to find ways to do the same in our present age and do them as a class. For example, this year students created a website with encouraging original poems for Ukrainians affected by the Russia-Ukraine war.}

_{The best part about being a teacher is: creating a safe place for students to grow their minds, be part of a community, and become all they were meant to be.}

_{Fun fact about me: I have had the honor of being a foster parent for unaccompanied refugee minors. My husband, our three daughters, and I enjoy being their "American home."}

_{Kathryn Jones}

_{Luiseño School · Corona, CA 
ELA Teacher, 6th grade}

_{Years teaching: 23 years} 

_{My favorite Action stories to teach are: the True Teen Stories because of the high interest level for students. This past year, my students really enjoyed “His Art Does the Talking.”  Tyler’s story of overcoming his speech disorder, and the ensuing bullying he experienced for being “different,” by expressing himself through art provides other young people the encouragement and tools to face their own challenges.} 

_{The best part about being a teacher is: helping students discover that learning is a joy. When they say how much they had fun in the learning activity and how much they enjoyed the class—this is when I just love being a classroom teacher.}

_{Favorite hobbies: Swimming with my family, watching and hearing the waves crashing at the beach, or zipping around the lake in our boat.}

_{Danielle Mitchell}

_{Centerville Jr. High · Centerville, UT
Special Education Reading Teacher, 7-9th grade}

_{Years teaching: 3 years} 

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: “The Boy Who Fought Hitler” because it is a great way to help students utilize their background knowledge and critical thinking skills. Most students have some level of background knowledge of WWII and they build on that knowledge together in an engaging way.} 

_{The best part about being a teacher is: watching my students grow and witnessing those "lightbulb" moments when it clicks and they've grasped the concept you are teaching.}

_{Favorite hobbies: I am a giant bookworm and love reading. Other hobbies include outdoor recreation (hiking, fishing, camping, etc.), professional photography, and travel.}

_{Gabriella Mitselmakher}

_{I.S. 240 Magnet School of Steam · Brooklyn, NY
Speech Language Pathologist, 6-8th grade}

_{Years teaching: 6 years} 

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: "Are These Chips Too Delicious?"/“Love at First Crunch” because we are able to uncover why chips are so addicting!}

_{The best part about being a teacher is: giving my students a voice and the ability to communicate with others.}

_{Fun fact about me: I have a red toy poodle named Truffle. My students got to know him during remote learning because he loved to be part of our sessions!}

_{Uma Natarajan}

_{Glenda Dawson High School · Pearland, TX
ESL Teacher and LPAC Coordinator, 10th and 12th grade}

_{Years teaching: 26}

_{My favorite Action stories to teach are: the argumentative prompts because two sides of an argument are present in those articles. My students can easily pull out the points they need to form an essay. I also like using the Paired Texts. The content is interesting and Emerging Bilinguals find it easy to read.} 

_{The best part about being a teacher is: that I get to be with my students every day and see them grow. I see them when they enter high school like a deer in headlights and four years later I see them as confident young men and women ready to face the world. Above all, I feel young at heart being with teens.}

_{Favorite hobbies: I love gardening. I love to see my plants grow and produce. I get fresh organic produce from my backyard. I also enjoy learning to create different dishes from other cultures.}

_{Tiffany Patterson}

_{Hillcrest High School · Jamaica, NY
ELA/ENL Teacher, 9-12th grade}

_{Years teaching: 9}

_{My favorite Action stories to teach are: The In the News articles because they are always timely and relevant. I also enjoy the True Teen stories because my students are more engaged when they can make connections to texts and relate to other teenagers.} 

_{The best part about being a teacher is: Seeing just how much a student can grow over the course of a school year. What is even more heartwarming is when they return years later to share their achievements and progress.}

_{Favorite hobbies: Watching history documentaries and listening to true crime podcasts}

_{Brett Schwartz}

_{Merrick Avenue Middle School · Merrick, New York
Reading Teacher, 7-8th grade}

_{Years teaching: 14 years}

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: "My Life in Two Languages” because the author, Betiana, was my student! I will never forget telling her that she won the essay contest.}

_{The best part about being a teacher is: Learning from my students! Everyone in the class has something to teach.}

_{Favorite hobby: Figuring out how to fix things around the house. I haven't made anything much worse... yet!}

_{Laura Smith}

_{Fairforest Middle School · Spartanburg, SC
English Language Arts Teacher, 7th grade}

_{Years teaching: 14 years}

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: "Should this Elephant Go Free?" because it engaged my students more than any other story I have ever used.  Some were outraged at her living conditions while others shared potential solutions to the issue. We ended up sending 65 letters to the Wildlife Conservation Society, and my students asked me every day about the court case.}  

_{The best part about being a teacher is: that there is no other job in the world where so many people smile when you show up. Plus, kids are genuine and will speak their minds!}

_{Favorite hobby: I like to sew and upcycle thrifted items into decor.}

_{Angela Stouder}

_{Alice Douse Elementary · Killeen, TX
Interventionist, K-6th grade}

_{Years teaching: 7 years} 

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: “My Dad Went to Prison.” When I was working in middle school, the number of my students who could relate on an emotional level was significant, and it opened up great class dialogue (just as a vast majority of the True Teen Stories do).} 

_{The best part about being a teacher is: the relationships that are built and maintained with my students, parents, and colleagues. It is so inspiring watching these students grow into young adults and hopefully making a positive impact.} 

_{Favorite hobby: I love to travel and have visited over 20 different countries.}

_{Christina Velasquez}

_{Culver City High School · Culver City, CA
Special Education SAI English Teacher, 9-12th grade}

_{Years teaching: 25 years} 

_{My favorite Action story to teach is: “She Changed Her School Forever" because I love articles that inspire our students to speak up and make a difference in their community. My students also love all the True Teen Stories because they relate to the teens in some way.}

_{The best part about being a teacher is:  that I can make even a small difference in so many lives. This is so much more than a job to me. It is my dream come true.}

_{Favorite hobbies: My family is a big group of Star Wars nerds. We have a dog named Princess Leia, a leopard gecko named Ray, and a rabbit named Luke Skywalker. We love Disney movies and spending time outdoors together.}

_{Sandra Zajac-Naylor}

_{Windsor Locks Middle School · Windsor Locks, CT
Library Media Specialist, 6-8th grade}

_{Years teaching: 26 years}

_{My favorite Action stories to teach are: the Paired Texts because comparing two topics allows me to engage the students in high interest topics as well as address reading standards.}

_{The best part about being a teacher is: that teaching each day is a new day, an opportunity to develop relationships with kids and introduce them to a wide variety of reading.}

_{Favorite hobbies: Reading and cooking!}