Aundrea Tabbs-Smith
Norwalk,CT
Summary
Reputation for displaying a calm demeanor, integrity, and professionalism when communicating with people of all walks of life. Strong relationship-building and effective collaboration with administrators, coworkers, families, and students.
Enthusiastic and creative educator with solid understanding of student development and learning styles. Possesses excellent communication and interpersonal skills and connects with students from diverse backgrounds. Experienced developing engaging lesson plans and assessments to measure student progress.
Overview
20
20
years of professional experience
Work History
Emotional Well-being Coordinator
Friends Center For Children
06.2023 - Current
- Partners with caregivers to enhance their child's physical, social, emotional and educational development.
- Supports families in building positive, caregiving relationships with their children while honoring each family's home culture, language and self-identified needs.
- Provides educational and support services to enrolled families with children and Staff members with the support of a Supervising LCSW and the Administrative Team
- Consults with educators to individualize the program to accommodate children's needs
- Guides trauma-informed assessments of behavior and the choice of interventions
- Supports developmentally appropriate expectations and structure in the classroom
- Models interpersonal skill-building and emotional regulation techniques
- Provides well-being information, short-term counseling and referrals for staff members
- Develops wrap-around referrals for children, families and staff Support the development of new resources as needed
- Contributes to staff development and community messages re: cultural oppression, bias, peaceful play, safety protocols, staff cooperation and climate, ethics, relationship building/repairing, team-building, emotional intelligence, and diversity
HR Talent Associate
FRIENDS CENTER FOR CHILDREN
11.2021 - 06.2023
- Responsible for overseeing major human resources functions within the organization, including but not limited to recruitment, orientation, career development, benefits management, succession planning, compensation.
- Partnered with the executive team in the development and implementation of policies and procedures for accomplishing human resources goals and objectives.
- Provided strategic leadership and communicated all HR needs and updates to the executive management team.
- Recruited for open positions and perform the full life cycle of recruiting activities including sourcing and screening applicants, attending career fairs, maintaining recruiting systems, providing follow-through with candidates, and reporting recruiting statistics
- Directed employee background processes for the purpose of ensuring employees are in compliance with applicable state regulation.
- Lead employee onboarding activities and provide support to managers when integrating new hires into the organization
Site Director
FRIENDS CENTER FOR CHILDREN
06.2020 - 10.2021
- Lead the Friends Center community in partnership with the Executive Director and the Management Team, coordinating closely with the Preschool and Infant/Toddler Program managers
- Planned, directed, and supported the activities of staff involved in providing for the physical, emotional, social and educational needs of children aged three months to five years
- Formulated program goals and objectives, staffing plans and procedures
- Supported staff in providing developmentally appropriate care for all children including children with special needs in the classroom, in collaboration with Curriculum Supervisor.
Director of Admissions
WATERSIDE SCHOOL
08.2018 - 05.2020
- Executed programming that allowed the community to learn more about the School
- Evaluated potential students
- Recruited families that fit the School's mission.
Institute for Innovative Teaching and Learning Fellow
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2017 - 08.2018
- Developed a mentoring program for girls of color that spanned grades kindergarten through twelfth grade.
- Executed the goals of the program, connecting Lower and Middle School girls of color with Upper School mentors.
- Scheduled meetings between mentors and mentees.
- Organized affinity events to bring together women faculty, alumnae, students, parents and caregivers of color.
- Cultivated new ideas and facilitated innovative and integrated programs, curriculum, and instruction.
- Centered school values: Respect and responsibility; Commitment to personal & academic excellence; Diversity within an inclusive community; and Service.
Fourth Grade Lead Teacher
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2014 - 08.2018
- Employed assessment tools and proactive strategies to improve instruction methods
- Conducted parent-teacher conferences to maximize student-learning opportunities and develop forward-thinking plans to correct ongoing issues
- Cultivated a classroom environment where students felt safe and strived for personal growth
- Collaborated with education professionals on student achievement, growth, and development
- Developed curriculum and lessons that met the needs of the students and stimulated their learning experience.
Lower School Diversity Coordinator
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2015 - 06.2017
- Created programs that allowed students and teachers to come together and have difficult conversations
- Sustained a school community that is diverse and inclusive, one in which all members can participate fully and maximize their potential
- Provided a curriculum that the teachers used to carry out instruction
- Executed a 'One School, One Book' event which enabled the entire lower school to read the same text and take part in various activities.
Day Camp Director
ESF SUMMER CAMPS
06.2016 - 08.2016
- Managed 17 counselors by providing daily instruction to ensure they met the specific needs of the campers and were following camp policy
- Directed six camp groups with 20 or more children in each group
- The campers ranged from 5-9 years of age
- Guided and directed inspirational morning briefings, which gave the counselors the activities and expectations of the day
- Conducted mid-day checkpoints, ensuring that none of the campers experienced any health problems while in the program
- Provided performance evaluations for each counselor, delivering the necessary tools to be successful throughout the day.
Third Grade Lead Teacher
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2010 - 06.2014
- Employed assessment tools and proactive strategies to improve instruction methods
- Conducted parent-teacher conferences to maximize student-learning opportunities and develop forward-thinking plans to correct ongoing issues
- Cultivated a classroom environment where students felt safe and strived for personal growth
- Collaborated with education professionals on student achievement, growth, and development
- Developed curriculum and lessons that met the needs of the students and stimulated their learning experience.
Lower School Diversity Coordinator
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2011 - 06.2013
- Created programs that allowed students and teachers to come together and have difficult conversations
- Sustained a school community that is diverse and inclusive, one in which all members can participate fully and maximize their potential
- Provided a curriculum that the teachers used to carry out instruction
- Executed a 'One School, One Book' event which enabled the entire lower school to read the same text and take part in various activities.
First Grade Lead Teacher
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2008 - 06.2010
- Employed assessment tools and proactive strategies to improve instruction methods
- Conducted parent-teacher conferences to maximize student-learning opportunities and develop forward-thinking plans to correct ongoing issues
- Cultivated a classroom environment where students felt safe and strived for personal growth
- Collaborated with education professionals on student achievement, growth, and development
- Developed curriculum and lessons that met the needs of the students and stimulated their learning experience.
First Grade Teaching Assistant
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2006 - 06.2008
- Planned and taught many subjects within the first-grade curriculum
- Assisted the lead teacher in preparing for parent-teacher conferences
- Received training in PAF/Orton Gillingham and used the Lucy Calkins writing program and TERC Investigations program to teach the writing and math curriculums respectively
- Collaborated with education professionals on student achievement, growth, and development.
Day Camp Director
ESF SUMMER CAMPS
06.2007 - 08.2007
- Managed 17 counselors by providing daily instruction to ensure they met the specific needs of the campers and were following camp policy
- Directed six camp groups with 20 or more children in each group
- The campers ranged from 5-9 years of age
- Guided and directed inspirational morning briefings, which gave the counselors the activities and expectations of the day
- Conducted mid-day checkpoints, ensuring that none of the campers experienced any health problems while in the program
- Provided performance evaluations for each counselor, delivering the necessary tools to be successful throughout the day.
Education
Masters Degree - Special Education
BANK STREET COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
New York, NY01-2009
Bachelors Degree - Elementary/Early Childhood Education
TEMPLE UNIVERSITY
Philadelphia, PA01-2006
Skills
- Inclusive classroom settings
- Presenting ideas and plans
- Staff management
- Administrative leadership
- Strong collaborator
- Positive reinforcement
- Positive learning environment
- Student-centered learning
- Age-appropriate lesson planning
- Student motivation
- Effective leader
- Staff training/development
- Relationship building
Timeline
Emotional Well-being Coordinator
Friends Center For Children
06.2023 - Current
HR Talent Associate
FRIENDS CENTER FOR CHILDREN
11.2021 - 06.2023
Site Director
FRIENDS CENTER FOR CHILDREN
06.2020 - 10.2021
Director of Admissions
WATERSIDE SCHOOL
08.2018 - 05.2020
Institute for Innovative Teaching and Learning Fellow
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2017 - 08.2018
Day Camp Director
ESF SUMMER CAMPS
06.2016 - 08.2016
Lower School Diversity Coordinator
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2015 - 06.2017
Fourth Grade Lead Teacher
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2014 - 08.2018
Lower School Diversity Coordinator
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2011 - 06.2013
Third Grade Lead Teacher
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2010 - 06.2014
First Grade Lead Teacher
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2008 - 06.2010
Day Camp Director
ESF SUMMER CAMPS
06.2007 - 08.2007
First Grade Teaching Assistant
RYE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL
08.2006 - 06.2008
Bachelors Degree - Elementary/Early Childhood Education
TEMPLE UNIVERSITY
Masters Degree - Special Education
BANK STREET COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Honors And Professional Development
- Keynote Speaker for Rye Country Day School's Lower School and Middle School Martin Luther King Jr. Assemblies (01/2026)
- Presenter at the 2nd Annual Belonging, Affirming and Motivation Conference: The Third Thing Storytelling Workshop (12/2025)
- Friends Council on Education's 2025-2026 Cohort of the Spirited Practice and Renewed Courage Program (SPARC)
- Article published with Black Press USA: Affirming Black Children Through Books: Stories That Help Them See Their Light (10/28/25)
- Published picture book, Never Too Much (05/28/2024)
- NAIS Annual Conference PechaKucha Presenter - Lessons That Stick: how to create a curriculum that includes diverse perspectives, 02/2020
- Presenter at Educators2Educators Virtual Conference, 07/2020
- Co-presenter at NAIS's People of Color Conference, 12/2019
- Lower School Chair, Rye Country Day School, 2016
- People of Color Conference and Student Diversity Leadership Conference, Winter 2015
- Singapore Math Workshop, Summer 2013
- Learning and the Brain Conference, Fall 2013
- NYAIS Diversity Conference: Religious Diversity, 01/2012