Background

I’ve been a certified high school English teacher for ten years. I taught in LAUSD schools for eight of those years in a Title I, high needs school where 100% of students received three free meals a day, and many were living in foster care. In my classes, I taught in a full-inclusion model, where half the class were General Education students, and the other half were Special Education students. My job was to provide the appropriate individual accommodations that would allow each student to access grade-level material, and thrive in the classroom. I also served as a strong advocate for the SpEd students in their Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meetings.

Working with these students and their families, I witnessed a challenging gap in the resources and services they were accessing at home. Parents were struggling to navigate regional center services, and their children with special needs were being underserved. I was also inspired by my spouse’s family who houses and cares for many foster children with special needs, and their struggle to find optimal support in the Self-Determination Program.

I started Ownself Facilitation, LLC to help families and persons with special needs, and support them in cultivating a life where they feel empowered by choice and independence.

I am dedicated to serving people of all communities, genders, sexual identities, ethnicities, religions, and abilities with compassion and equity.