Teacher Biographies

Kindergarten – Mrs. Judy Perez

 

Mrs. Judy Perez attended St. Albert the Great Parish School and Regina Caeli High School in Compton.  She has been teaching young children for about sixteen years, from infants to first grade. For the last eleven years, she has been teaching kindergarten.  You won’t find anyone more qualified as Judy has an AA degree in Child Development, a B.A. in Liberal Studies, a Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction, and a Ph.D/ABD in Curriculum and Instruction.

 

It is the goal of Mrs. Perez to continue to teach in the classroom, write curriculum and create new and innovative learning strategies to enhance children's learning.  She loves teaching young children because they are pliable, honest and full of energy.  She believes God gave her the gift of patience and creativity with young children.  She teaches them with high expectations because she believes they will rise to the challenge.   Always creative, she loves to sing, dance, use puppets and drama in her teaching.   She provides the students with a host of hands on experiences.

 

Mrs. Perez is the proud mother of three children and a grandmother of four.  Her family is extremely important to her.   She also loves to watch movies, shop in bookstores, listen to music, and make greeting cards.  Always truly excited about being at Our Lady of Fatima School, she cannot wait to meet the children and parents who will be part of the kindergarten community.  She has found that the teachers here at OLF are dedicated to their profession and committed to excellence.

 

 

 

First Grade - Mrs. Alice Ackley

       

Mrs. Alice Ackley attended St. Jerome’s in Westchester, St. Mary’s Academy in Inglewood, and Mount St. Mary’s College where she earned her B.A. in French (with a minor in English) along with her teaching credential.  Before she completed her Master’s Degree at Cal State Los Angeles, she spent a year in Nancy, France and still corresponds (in French) with friends she made there.

 

Alice credits her father, who is now 96 years old, with teaching her two things above all others:  a love of reading, and the importance of humor in her life.  She strives to make her classroom a place where children are eager to read, and where they all can have some fun as they are learning.  She is convinced that Jesus enjoyed a good laugh with the little children He asked to come unto Him. During her 20 years at Our Lady of Fatima School, Mrs. Ackley believes without a doubt that her life has been enriched by the many children, parents, and teachers.  She knows Our Lady herself is at work in our parish school and she is ready to guide her students closer to her son, Jesus. 

 

She and her husband, Dave, have been married for 34 years.  They have 2 children, Danielle and Jared, both of whom graduated from OLF and went on to Catholic high schools.  Both Alice and Dave are very proud of the success of their children, and they credit Our Lady of Fatima with getting them off to an excellent start. Mrs. Ackley and her husband Dave love to travel and recently went on a cruise to the Baltic where, at St. Petersburg, she met her Russian pen pal for the first time, after 20 years of corresponding! Another one of her favorite hobbies is cooking, especially making desserts.  And she loves to incorporate this into her classes.  Among the treats that her first graders have enjoyed are apple pancakes, a Mardi Gras King Cake, and, her personal favorite, the erupting volcano cake!

 

 

 

Second Grade – Mrs. Sonia Marroquin

 

Mrs. Sonia Marroquin lets her students know that she is proud to be a product of Catholic School Education as well as a believer in it today! Her faith formation was developed early on by her father and by her teachers at St. Pius V School in Buena Park and at Saint Joseph High School in Lakewood. With a strong sense of faith and a firm academic foundation, she was able to easily transition to college life. Sonia earned her B.A. in Communications at Cal State Fullerton University and her M.S. in Education at Mt. St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles. She also studied at University of Phoenix to earn her multiple subject teaching credential.

 

Mrs. Marroquin has over ten years experience in Catholic school education.  Sonia has taught both at the primary and high school level. She was also the vice principal at her former school for six years and enjoyed being part of the school planning and curriculum development team.  However, second grade is her favorite grade to teach because the children take part in two sacraments for the first time: Penance and Holy Communion. When it comes to academics, she is firm and sets high expectations for her students to achieve.  She believes with setting the bar high, her students will be able to do things they never thought they could.

 

In her experience, Mrs. Marroquin has come to understand that Catholic Education is a partnership between the school, family and parish. The parish brings forth the families which in turn look to the school for faith and academic formation. Sonia firmly believes that the families are the primary educators of our youth and teachers are here to support your efforts.  She and her husband look forward to the day when their children will begin their school experience, and they too will get the one of a kind faith and academic support found only in Catholic Education.

 

 

 

Third Grade – Mrs. Jessica Miyashiro

 

Mrs. Jessica Miyashiro joined the OLF faculty in 2009, adding her expertise to an already stellar group of educators. She is very enthusiastic to be part of the team at Our Lady of Fatima School. She feels privileged to be able to teach in an environment where she can continue to openly share her Catholic faith. 

 

Mrs. Miyashiro is a Catholic school alumna from St. Joseph’s in Upland, California and truly realizes the value of what Catholic schools have to offer. She graduated from Azusa Pacific with a degree in Human Development with a concentration in English. The 2009 school year will be her fourth year teaching.  She previously taught in the Diocese of San Bernardino at St. George as the kindergarten teacher and two years at Our Lady of Lourdes as the fifth grade teacher. 

 

She looks forward to this school year and knows that everyone at OLF works non-stop to make each child’s education experience both meaningful and memorable. 

 

Fourth Grade – Miss Taylor Hillis

 

Miss Taylor Hillis has been the 4^th Grade teacher here at Our Lady of Fatima School since 2007.  Due to her strong Catholic school primary education, she was given the opportunity to attend Whitney High School where she stayed from 7^th grade until her graduation in 2000.  From there, it was on to Chapman University where she received her B.A. in Liberal Arts in 2004 and earned her Multiple Subject Teaching Credential in 2005.  Her ultimate goal is to receive her Master of Arts in teaching. But because she was new to teaching, she decided to devote her full time and attention to her students. 

 

Miss Hillis realized at the end of first year teaching that she had truly found her passion.  She loves teaching the 4^th graders; they offer just enough wit and feistiness, mixed with a little mischief, to be truly engaging. Working together with the parents of her students, she feels the teachers here at OLF can offer children an education today that prepares them to be ready for the challenges ahead. 

 

Our Lady of Fatima School and Holy Family Parish are very special to her.  She was baptized and confirmed right here at Holy Family Church.  Her brother, Joshua, is a recent graduate of Our Lady of Fatima School (Class of 2008).  Some of her other interests are reading, relaxing bike rides, and swimming.  She also enjoys traveling.  She has seen the distant lands of Thailand and Cambodia, the shores of Hawaii and Puerto Rico, as well as the lush regions of Mexico and Costa Rica.  She is hoping her next adventure will take her to Europe!

 

 

 

Fifth Grade – Mrs. Megan Rhoades

 

Mrs. Rhodes obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Studies at Chapman University in Orange, California, as well as her Multiple Subject Teaching Credential.  She has also a Master of Arts in Teaching. 

 

As each new school year gets underway, she finds herself looking forward to the arrival of her new students.  One of the true advantages of teaching at Our Lady of Fatima School is that she is already familiar with her students--having seen them from Kindergarten to the time when they arrive at her fifth grade door.  Each year as the school year fast approaches, she is very excited to be returning to Our Lady of Fatima and always looks forward to a wonderful and productive year!  She has found that teaching at a small school, like Our Lady of Fatima, has allowed her the opportunity to provide a more personalized educational experience to her students. She feels the advantage of this to students, as well as teachers, is immeasurable.

 

Mrs. Rhodes and her husband Elliott love to travel and enjoyed beautiful time in Maui where they spent their honeymoon. 

 

 

 

Sixth Grade – Ms. Shea-Lynn McDougall-Hicks

 

Ms. Hicks is very thrilled to be able to prepare the students of our 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th Grades with a strong mathematical foundation that will allow them to excel in their future high school years.  She is a product and advocate of Catholic education as it “runs in the family.” She attended Our Lady Help of Christians during her elementary school years and then attended Sacred Heart High School. Her strong academic background led her to succeed at UCLA where she received her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology with a minor in Education.  She also holds a Master’s Degree in Education from Loyola Marymount University. 

 

Ms. Hicks is very excited to continue her journey with the students at OLF.  When the end of August approaches, she can’t wait to meet all the new students and welcome back those returning. She has a great passion for teaching as she views the classroom as a comfortable environment where learning comes alive. 

 

 

 

Seventh Grade – Mr. James Miyashiro

 

Mr. James Miyashiro. Mr. Miyashiro serves as the 7^th Grade homeroom teacher, junior high Language Arts teacher, and Athletic Director at Our Lady of Fatima School. As a Catholic school alumnus, he has personally benefited from the challenging academic setting as well as the nurturing faith communities of Saints’ Simon and Jude School in Huntington Beach and Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana.  He remembers his twelve years of Catholic school education as wonderful times of learning, faith sharing, and development – academically as a student and spiritually as a Catholic Christian. He earned his Bachelors degree and teaching credential at nearby Cal State Long Beach and his Cross-cultural, Language, and Academic Development Certificate and Professional Clear Credential through the University of San Diego.

 

Previously, he taught at Holy Family School in Wilmington. He believes that teaching in a Catholic School is not just a job, but in truth, a vocation.  He sees his students as full of much hope and promise.  As a teacher, he loves bringing this promise to light. Nothing brings him more joy than when he feels instrumental in helping one of his students discover that light within him or her self.

 

On a personal note, he has been blessed to be married to Jessica, our 3^rd Grade teacher. The most important things to this dynamic duo are their faith, family, and teaching. During their spare time, they enjoy going to Angels games, movies, cycling, running, hiking, and camping.

 

 

 

Eighth Grade – Miss Nadia Boricha

 

Miss Nadia Boricha teaches 8^th grade as well as junior high science/social studies.  Miss Boricha is a proud graduate of Catholic education!  She attended Kindergarten through 8^th grade at St. Bruno’s in Whittier, and continued on to Rosary High School in Fullerton.  She is also a tennis Special Olympics coach and was a camp counselor in high school.  Miss Boricha received her B.A. in Political Science from UCLA in 2005.  After a year in law school pursuing a J.D. related to children’s advocacy, she realized something was amiss.  During that time, she was a law clerk at the Children’s Law Center of Los Angeles, and did not feel like she was making enough of a difference.  After a lot of praying and discussion with her friends and family, she realized that she had been called by God to be a teacher.  She feels that teaching is what God intended her to do, and He blessed her with the gift for teaching children.  Since leaving law school, she has aggressively pursued her teaching credential and Master’s in Education.

 

Miss Boricha believes it is essential to communicate to children that every single one of them has the potential to learn, and will learn in her classroom.  It is her goal to teach the junior high students not only the subjects of science and social studies, but also the necessary study and social skills they will need in the future.  She promotes critical thinking and as a result, students become active learners in her classroom.  She feels honored to have been called as a teacher to assist in molding youth and preparing them for their future.  With some event planning experience, she also looks forward to working on the science fair and the very special graduation ceremony for the 8^th graders!