Giving Hope at Oakwood School

In the spring of 1988, I answered a newspaper ad for a teaching position at Oakwood. At the time, I had just come from the Assets School in Hawaii, a private school specializing in students with language-based learning differences. I was immediately drawn to Oakwood’s similar mission, collaborative environment, caring hearts, and dedication to doing what’s right for students. 

Since that first teaching position, I’ve come and gone from Oakwood several times over the years due to life events and military relocations. I’ve worked at Oakwood part-time and full-time, teaching and testing, and in 1997, I returned for the final time with a call to take on a new role as the "Admissions Specialist". It has been my calling, and I have been honored to serve in this capacity for almost 30 years. 

When working with families, my goal has always been to truly listen and then to help them find hope. Hope for the possibilities of what can be.

Parents don’t want their children to struggle, and often, by the time they reach out, they’re carrying intense worry about their child’s confidence, self-esteem, and happiness. No two students are alike, and no two journeys to Oakwood look identical.

That is what has made admissions so interesting and fulfilling, and why I feel so blessed. 

Over the years, I’ve watched Oakwood evolve in so many ways. I remember when progress reports were created on a typewriter, when we first established a computer lab, and when we adopted the model of two teachers in a classroom. We’ve held on to the Oakwood Way, those things we have always known to be best for our students, but we’ve also embraced the newest educational research.

Best practices have always been at the heart of Oakwood, and now, science has caught up to what we’ve known all along - kids thrive when they feel safe, valued, and believed in. That’s what Bob and Mary McIntyre intended when they founded Oakwood, and that’s what has kept me here all these years, a belief in what can be.

As I look ahead to retirement in June 2025, I do so with deep gratitude. This school, this community, and these families have shaped my life in ways I never could have imagined when I first walked through those doors in 1988.

Thank you for allowing me to be part of your journey, just as you have been such a cherished part of mine. My heart is full.