[StBernard] Chalmette Elementary honors its student and teacher of the year: Chalmette Matters

[Westley Annis]

Chalmette Elementary honors its student and teacher of the year: Chalmette
Matters
Print Annette Phillips By Annette Phillips 
on December 25, 2013 at 6:00 AM, updated December 25, 2013 at 6:24 AM

Chalmette Elementary School recently honored its student and teacher of the
year. Dakota Sievers was named fifth grade student of the year. Dante'
Fuoco, a special education teacher, was named teacher of the year.

Student of the year nominees qualify based on a 3.5 or higher grade point
average for their whole elementary school career. Students are then judged
based on their extracurricular involvement, an essay, and interview with
judges.

Dakota,the daughter of Carmelite and Herbert Sievers Jr., met all of the
qualifications. "We are so proud of her," her mother said. "She has worked
really hard for this."

The Sievers said they are committed to Dakota's academic success. They
support her extracurricular involvement in academic games, bell choir,
chorus, drama, and Viking Brigade.

Principal Elizabeth Winslow said she is proud of Dakota. "I have enjoyed
watching her grow and mature," Winslow said. "She has been a delight to have
in our school. "I am really excited she is representing our school as
student of the year."

Fuoco is a self-contained special education teacher. Teacher of the year
nominees are voted on by the faculty and staff.

"I was honored and surprised," Fuoco said. "I was humbled and grateful to be
named."

Fuoco, a native of Pittsburg, Penn., is part of the Teach for America
program. He started as an English major with a minor in education.

"Analytical skills that are required for being an English major have helped
me in being a special education teacher," he said. "It helps in analyzing
students' disabilities, and trying to be creative and think of new things on
the spot."

Fuoco became a special education teacher to help fill the gap of knowledge
for students with disabilities.

"I really love special education, on a social justice level, because it is a
layer of education that is not talked about often," he said. "It was
something I didn't think about before, students who have learning
disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and emotional issues."

Fuoco said he works hard to create a community for his students. He said his
main goal is to help them be successful in multiple settings. "I try not to
cordon off my classroom," he said. "There is a broader world out there, not
a special education world."

In helping students with disabilities feel a part of the larger school
community, Fuoco said he tries to work with and support general education
teachers. "It is a disservice to general education teachers and my students
if I do not support them in multiple settings."

Teaching is a profession in which it is important to love what you do. "I
love the fact that I get to know six kids really closely," Fuoco said. "What
fires me up each day is to see their resilience, thoughtfulness, and
compassion for other people."

So what does this Pittsburgh-born teacher think of Chalmette?

"I learned that Chalmette is the kind of place with really salt of the earth
people who are very dedicated to their family, their jobs, their religion,
their community," he said. "It made me feel at home because it reminds me of
the place my family grew up in...a very tight knit community."

Annette Phillips writes about people, places, and events in Chalmette. Send
stories to Annette at chalmettematterstp at gmail.com or call 504.250.6248.