Aurora Public Schools is on a journey to become THE Destination District in Colorado through our strategic plan, Destination APS. Central to that vision is ensuring that our educators are valued, seen, safe and thriving, while continuing to recruit, hire and retain the most talented staff.
This year, APS welcomes a number of outstanding educators who embody that commitment.
Daniels Fund Scholar Returns Home
Ontario Duley has reaped the benefits of an APS education. Now, the Aurora native wants to pay it forward.
Duley begins his first year teaching fourth grade at his former elementary school, Virginia Court, where he started a journey that continued to Aurora Hills Middle School, Gateway High School, and then to the University of Denver on a Daniels Fund scholarship, where he graduated with a degree in political science.
"Growing up in this community and now coming back to teach is really like looking in a mirror,” he said. “There’s just something about Aurora. It’s always good to come back home.”
Duley had been working in sales but wasn’t feeling a fulfillment of purpose–that’s when he decided to return to his alma mater to help out as an assistant basketball coach at Gateway on a part-time basis.
He enjoyed the experience so much he started substitute teaching for APS last year.
“It was so wonderful and people kept encouraging me to change my career path to teaching.”
Now, everything will come full circle this August when he starts as a full-time fourth-grade teacher at Virginia Court.
Fostering Creativity at Vista PEAK Preparatory
Sarah Hagan-Sheehy brings 11 years in education to her first year as a speech-language pathology assistant at Vista PEAK Preparatory.
The Littleton native started last fall as a contracted SLPA at Vista PEAK and had such an amazing experience that she applied to come back.
The Colorado lifer is especially excited to grow with the school and special service provider team this year, and says that her education superpower is creativity.
“I love to do crafts to make things interesting,” she said. “If there’s a game, I want to put a spin on it to make it more fun and engaging.”
Building Relationships at Virginia Court Elementary
When Preston Teters was looking for a place for his young family to call home, he knew APS hit all the right notes to be their Destination District.
The native of San Antonio, Texas, had been searching for a place that modeled key attributes and characteristics like culture and excellence and found it when he accepted a position to teach fourth-grade reading at Virginia Court Elementary.
Teters, a father of three, enters his eighth year overall as a teacher but is especially looking forward to his oldest son starting kindergarten at Virginia Court, where he knows he’ll be “in an environment where he’s nurtured.”
The experienced educator knows the start of a new school year brings all sorts of emotions, which is why it’s important to build relationships with students.
”I just want the kids to feel welcomed on that first day,” Teters said. “Everybody is what I call ‘nervous-cited’--nervous and excited—so they want to feel welcomed and feel like they have a space that they can call their own.”
New Purpose in a Familiar Place
When Coal Creek P-8 opens its doors for the first time this fall, Brooke Ordoñez will be among the staff there to welcome in new students.
Ordoñez is entering her first year as the school social worker at Coal Creek following time spent with both Denver Public Schools and the Douglas County School District.
It’s an exciting homecoming for the graduate of Hinkley High School who wanted to come back to the district that helped shape her and give back to a community that she loves.
Ordoñez initially wanted to use her skills in criminal justice and was unsure about working in schools. With experience as a gymnastics coach, however, she started to do social work in schools and immediately fell in love.
“I love coaching and teaching kids new skills,” she said. “I love the energy that they bring, and that they’re so excited for anything new. I feel like social work is very similar to coaching–instead of teaching a back handspring I’m teaching social and emotional learning, emotional regulation and skills inside and outside of the classroom.”
As we welcome all the new educators who have joined APS this school year, we are reminded of the energy and passion they bring to our classrooms and community. Together, we look forward to building on that momentum and continuing our journey to make Aurora Public Schools THE Destination District in Colorado.