How I Got Into Special Education

I always knew I wanted to be a teacher — I just didn’t realize it would be special education until after returning from the military and having my son. I needed to start working as quickly as I could, so I took a job as a paraeducator, working with students with special needs in the classroom. From the first days, everything just felt right.

As I continued going to school and finishing my prerequisites to get into a teacher preparation program, I found out there were no openings for general education teachers — only for special education teachers. I just knew I needed to be in a classroom, so I jumped into the special education program.

Within a few weeks, the woman I had been working under was promoted to the district office. She encouraged me to start applying for teaching jobs, even if just for the experience. Little did I know, a local kindergarten Special Day Class (SDC) position had been struggling for some time — and they needed someone. I applied, interviewed, and oddly enough, I knew almost everyone on the staff already through my work with after-school programs and classroom support.
They offered me the position under an emergency credential.

That emergency credential changed my life.
It showed me exactly where I was meant to be.

When I started, the class had a rough reputation: students were reportedly running out of the classroom, yelling, throwing things. But when we put in strong routines, visual schedules, structure, expectations, and real parent communication, everything changed. Within weeks, we had built a true classroom community. The children adjusted beautifully, the parents felt heard for the first time in a long time, and my team and I created a space where the kids could finally succeed.

It wasn’t an easy area to work in — it wasn’t safe, and it wasn't well-resourced — but I knew deep down it was where I was supposed to be. Teaching those students felt like a calling.

After experiencing some personal losses in my family and realizing I needed a safer environment to raise my son, I decided to move. I applied for jobs in a city where some of my family already lived, and within a week, I was offered a new position. At first, I worked as a behavior specialist, supporting multiple schools by reviewing IEPs and placements. That role lasted about a year before I transitioned into a middle school special education classroom, teaching 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students.
And I fell in love with it.
I stayed there for 20 years.

Over those two decades, we built a program that pushed many of my students further than anyone ever thought possible.
We didn’t just teach academics — we fought for their dignity.
We fought against the mindset that if a child struggled, they didn’t belong.
We built a community where effort was recognized and where growth mattered more than labels.

But as time went on, especially when the pandemic hit, I knew I couldn't keep fighting the same battles forever.
I had remarried, had two more children, and my priorities shifted. It was time for a change.

We left California — where I had lived my whole life — and headed to Texas almost by accident. While driving through Texas to visit my oldest son (who had moved to Colorado), we realized how much we loved it. The people, the environment — it just felt like home. I'd been stationed in Texas during my time in the military and always had good memories of it. Now, it felt right again.

Starting over wasn't easy.
Texas had much higher general education requirements for teachers than when I originally got my credential, and I had to take several tests to qualify again. But the challenge opened a new door: the chance to start working one-on-one with families, helping them navigate the special education process — without the constant fear of saying the wrong thing or someone threatening a lawsuit over simple misunderstandings.

I learned that, while lawsuits are sometimes necessary, most families don't need a courtroom — they need someone who truly listens, someone who knows how the system works, and someone who will fight for what their child needs to succeed.

That’s still my mission today.
I'm building my dream: helping more families, more children, and making a bigger impact than I ever could inside one single classroom.