What Others Say About Garcia-Velasco

What Others Say About Garcia-Velasco

“I have always found Elena to be a remarkable colleague. She has never settled for mediocrity; on the contrary, she has extremely high expectations of our students and fervently believes this is the only way they will transcend the limitations of poverty. She will spend endless hours after school working with individual students to help them become proficient… . Elena is an educator with tremendous integrity who elevates our profession to a higher standard.” — Catherine Theriault, SEIS Teacher, Roosevelt High School

“When I first got to school, one of the things I was lacking was confidence. After having a semester of Ms. Garcia-Velasco’s class and realizing how much potential I had by knowing two languages, I felt compelled to learn, and I also felt proud of myself.” — Angel Gutierrez, 2011 Roosevelt High graduate who won a full scholarship to Brown University

“The Oregon Teacher of the Year is one teacher who stands for many—a teacher who exemplifies the qualities we look for in an outstanding educator, mentor, and leader. Elena Garcia-Velasco is all of these things and more. She is a passionate and dedicated educator with a deep commitment to equity, closing the academic achievement gap, and helping all of her students achieve at high levels.” — Susan Castillo, Oregon’s Superintendent of Public Instruction