Hi, my name is Sam!

I’m beyond excited to be a part of the UnmaskEd team specializing in work with teens and adults. My journey as an educator has led to experience working with preschool through adult ages in both public and private school settings, schools abroad, and higher education settings. My background is in English Language Development (ELD or ESOL), where I worked with English language learners and utilized multisensory learning approaches, community building strategies, and cultural exchanges, where students’ identities were seen as assets in the classroom. Through this work, I collaborated with colleagues in the special education department to more effectively incorporate and accommodate the strengths and needs of my students in the classroom.

Currently, I work as an academic counselor at the University of Denver’s Learning Effectiveness Program, a department specifically created to support neurodivergent students. I work 1 on 1 with students to improve their academic, executive functioning, social, and life skills. As many teens and young adults are entering transitional phases of their lives, I aim to provide support, resources, and skill building to help them reach their goals, so they can move towards different levels of independence with strong self-advocacy skills.

My approach

My approach is grounded first and foremost in relationship building; I view my work with clients as a partnership. Clients are met with empathy, listened to without judgement, and take part in co-creating strategies to meet their needs. Through student directed coaching styles, clients and I will work together on the following:

Supporting clients’ management of day-to-day challenges
Self-reflection, self-regulation, and exploring options for addressing these challenges
Facilitating clients’ management and development of specific skills

Although this process can look different for each client, my overall goal remains the same; which is to guide clients towards their level of desired independence and finding a system that works best for them.

My Background

Education

MA in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)
Learning Differences and Neurodiversity Certificate
Elementary Education (K-5) Credential
Bilingual Education Credential (English & Spanish)
Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) Certificate
BA in Visual Arts: Film & Video Production

Volunteer Experience and Memberships

SAIE’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Committee at DU
Collegiate Recovery Program: LEP executive functioning representative at DU
Journey to DU: LEP department representative

Additional Competencies:

Executive Functioning Coaching
Academic Counseling
Social Skills (navigating different social environments)
Self Advocacy Skills
Life Transitions
Career Coaching
Verbal and Written communication (for academic and professional contexts)