Caitlin Ballester
Georgetown,TX
Summary
Passionate, organized, hardworking and dependable teacher with 14+ years experience in developing and implementing curriculum. Highly skilled at motivating students through positive encouragement and reinforcement of concepts via interactive classroom instruction and observation. Successful in helping students develop strong literacy, numeracy, social/emotional and learning skills. Dedicated to promoting academic performance and fostering social skills and character development.
Overview
19
19
years of professional experience
Work History
Assistant Director
Gethsemane Lutheran
06.2019 - Current
- Managed school administration operations and organized teacher schedules, student registration processes and class orientation sessions.
- Oversaw school budgets, documented changes and tracked expenses to allocate and manage school funds.
- Directed school human resources including hiring, training, policy enforcement and legal compliance for school
- Responsible for accreditation process and yearly reporting through Texas Rising Star Program
- Visited classrooms to evaluate teacher instructional techniques as part of annual evaluation cycle.
- Guided instruction by mentoring teachers to improve leadership and teaching effectiveness.
- Responsible for registering staff for trainings and maintaining required documentation
- Organizes and oversees fundraising events
- Organizes and oversees special events such as Open House, training/in-service meetings, field trips, work days, and other school sponsored functions
- Assist with payroll and payables
- Create school wide publications of monthly newsletter, calendar, and menus
- Facilitate and participate in monthly staff and Advisory Board meetings
- Developed positive school climate by building effective communication within school.
- Assist in classrooms as needed for staff replacement
Second Grade Elementary Teacher
Challenger School
06.2017 - 06.2019
- Established and communicated clear learning objectives to foster student progress and academic performance.
- Explored foundational learning concepts with students through class discussions and hands-on activities
- Attended in-service training and professional development courses to stay on top of policy and education changes.
- Administered tests and assessed results to evaluate student understanding of material.
- Maintained positive classroom environments by reinforcing rules for behavior and relationship-building actions.
- Involved parents in student education by cultivating strong relationships.
- Embraced teaching children of diverse educational, cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
- Cultivated classroom environment focused on inclusion and growth, fostering both social and academic development.
Kindergarten Teacher
Challenger School
06.2012 - 06.2019
- Master Teacher and Trainer for professional development of new teachers/trainees (over 100 annually) by coordinating and deploying training programs to drive academic and intellectual development
- Plan, develop, and design appropriate and engaging curriculum and lesson plans based on comprehensive teaching of academic, social, and personal skills for children ages 5-6 years
- Teaching children to think for themselves and to value hard word, and inspire them with a love of learning and achievement
- Forming courteous and professional relationships with parents and students by engaging groups through conferences and phone calls as to discuss student progress and establish goals for improvement and advancement
- Monitoring, documenting, and reporting student progress to ensure cooperation and growth
- Motivating and supporting students in growing reading independence using methodical lessons on phonemic awareness and decoding as well as guiding them to spark imagination and foster reading comprehension and vocabulary development
Administrative Assistant, Lead Teacher
Bright Star Academy
01.2011 - 06.2012
- Set up, maintained and purged physical and electronic filing systems to keep records compliant and current
- Guided administrative and professional staff through computer and software problems, including answering questions, troubleshooting problems and training on specific uses
- Oversaw office inventory by preparing expense reports, restocking supplies, and submitting purchase orders for new products
- Responsible for school's website, calendar, Facebook and Twitter accounts as well as authored school's monthly newsletter
- Managed and anticipated clerical needs of school, including copying, faxing and file management
- Introduced new social media technology to classrooms, maximizing parent involvement and understanding of curriculum
- Worked with fellow teachers to develop cohesive and engaging educational plans and improve support for diverse students
- Developed and implemented on-site soccer program for children ages 3-12 years
Soccer Coach
St. Stephen's Episcopal School
06.2009 - 08.2011
- Instilled love of the sport by helping each player to fully grasp all areas of gameplay
- Developed specific training and exercise programs to meet individual requirements and team play strategies
- Performed various administrative tasks
Community Volunteer
Red Sox Foundation
09.2007 - 09.2009
- Volunteered to help contribute in harnessing the passion of Red Sox Nation to make a difference in the lives of children, veterans, families and communities in need throughout New England by improving their health, educational and recreational opportunities
Corps Member, Team Leader, Student Volunteer
Jumpstart
09.2007 - 05.2009
- Managed and coached and well as coordinated daily and weekly schedules and monthly calendar obligations for a team of Boston College volunteers
- Planned and implemented Jumpstart! sessions and facilitated team meetings
- Provided extra support for struggling students by tutoring children, serving in their classroom, communicating with their families, and attending training and service days
Soccer Coach
Boston College Athletics Department
06.2005 - 08.2008
- Applied established evaluation techniques and personal knowledge to assess abilities and assign players to correct positions
- Ran drills and fitness circuits to improve athletes' coordination and skills
- Checked equipment and monitored common areas to ensure neatness, organization and proper upkeep while remaining vigilant on safety
- Developed specific training and exercise programs to meet individual requirements and team play strategies
Education
Director's Certificate
Child Care Administrator's Credential Program
07.2020
Bachelor of Arts -
Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA2009
High School Diploma -
St. Stephen's Episcopal School
Austin, TX2005
Skills
- Student Engagement
- Literacy development
- Curriculum Design and Implementation
- Lesson Planning
- Faculty Collaboration
- Classroom Organization
- Open to and empowered by critical feedback
- Strong interpersonal skills and ability to build relationships in a challenging multicultural environment
- Highly motivated self-starter
Certification
Timeline
Assistant Director
Gethsemane Lutheran
06.2019 - Current
Second Grade Elementary Teacher
Challenger School
06.2017 - 06.2019
Kindergarten Teacher
Challenger School
06.2012 - 06.2019
Administrative Assistant, Lead Teacher
Bright Star Academy
01.2011 - 06.2012
Soccer Coach
St. Stephen's Episcopal School
06.2009 - 08.2011
Community Volunteer
Red Sox Foundation
09.2007 - 09.2009
Corps Member, Team Leader, Student Volunteer
Jumpstart
09.2007 - 05.2009
Soccer Coach
Boston College Athletics Department
06.2005 - 08.2008
Director's Certificate
Child Care Administrator's Credential Program
Bachelor of Arts -
Boston College
High School Diploma -
St. Stephen's Episcopal School
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