Karena Halco is a teacher.....sort of. More often than not, she discovers that she is the student: "Children are like nature; if you sit still and observe them, you will experience the mystery, genius, and sacredness of their spirit." Karena's journey has guided her from Texas to New Mexico, Maine, and Virginia before coming to Colorado. She holds a B.A. in Art and English with a minor in Anthropology, and a M.A. in Literature with a minor in Curriculum & Instruction from Texas Tech University. She also holds National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification in Adolescence and Young Adulthood English Language Arts. In 2003, she was granted a Fulbright-Hays Summer Scholarship Abroad to travel and study in Thailand & Laos. She has been teaching all levels of students for 12 years in public high schools. She has attended the Advanced Placement Institute, and has taught Pre-AP to gifted students for nine years. She was involved in musical, Shakespearean, and dramatic theatre as a director and a producer in Maine. While in Virginia, Karena was a speech, forensic & debate coach and judge. Karena lives with her rescued border collie, Badger, and her crested tail Siamese fighting fish, Ling Lom. Dark chocolate, otters, fireflies in fog, foreign & indie film, world music, and travel are a few of her passions. She brings that rich experience to the RMS Middle School.
When describing her teaching philosophy, Karena says “Our time on earth is a time for creating, evolving, discovering, sharing, dreaming, and loving while being in the moment. In and out of the classroom, I Endeavour to create a culture of secure community, affinity, challenging opportunity, empowerment, relevant purpose, and unconditional support while setting high expectations for each learner. I believe that Albert Einstein said it succinctly while speaking to a group of children in 1934: "I rejoice to see you before me today, happy youth of a sunny and fortunate land. Bear in mind that the wonderful things you learn in your schools are the work of many generations, produced by the enthusiastic effort and infinite labor in every country of the world. All this is put into your hands as your inheritance in order that you may receive it, honor it, add to it, and one day faithfully hand it on to your children. Thus do we mortals achieve immortality in the permanent things which we create in common. If you always keep that in mind you will find meaning in life and work and acquire the right attitude toward other nations and ages." I see myself as a shepherd of curiosity, passion, dreams, and achievement. With a little nudge here, a firm hand there, and possibly some heel-nipping or teeth-bearing, I hope that the students I have an opportunity to guide through the gates to the pastures of possibility take with them a strong sense of self, a desire to be even better than they can imagine, and the desire and ability to nurture themselves, their dreams, their fellow human beings, the creatures with whom they share this majikal journey with, and the planet we all call Mother Earth.” |
