ST. GEORGE — Rabecca Juarez, a life skills teacher at Panorama Elementary, has been honored with the 2024 Utah Special Education Teacher Rising Star Award. The award, presented by the Council for Exceptional Children, recognizes outstanding special education teachers within their first five years of teaching in Utah.
Juarez, who is starting her fifth year as a teacher, has been involved in special education with the Washington County School District for nearly 16 years. Despite her extensive experience, Juarez told St. George News she was taken aback by the recognition.
“I had no idea about it,” she said. “I was absolutely shocked I got the award.”
Juarez teaches life skills to students considered part of the “one percent,” those with severe disabilities.
“Not a lot of people understand what the one percent is,” she said.
Juarez said her students have significant challenges, including low IQs and adaptive scores. These students typically require support and specialized instruction to help them develop and integrate into various activities with their general education peers.
Most of her students spend about 80 percent of their day in her classroom as she develops relationships with them and cares for all her students.
Juarez said she is known for her assertiveness in advocating for her students’ needs and her dedication to collaboration.
“I am really assertive when it comes to my students and getting them what they need and deserve,” she said. “I will work with anybody I need to for the resources and inclusion that’s so important for them to be with their general education peers as much as possible.”
Some of that assertiveness may be connected to her brother.
“I have a brother who is severely disabled and is 12 years younger than I am. I was very conscious of what he was going through, making his way through elementary school and post-high school. I just had that love for special needs individuals to begin with,” she said.
This personal experience, combined with the guidance of great mentors, shaped her career path. And while she is assertive, Juarez is also known to keep things loose.
“We start our day with morning calendar and love to do Just Dance videos on YouTube to get all the morning wiggles out. I’ve got some kids that can dance to songs like ‘Final Countdown’ like they’re experts,” she said.
Family is also important to Juarez as an educator. She relies on volunteers, as life skills teachers don’t generally get a room parent.
“My family and kids have all spent time in my classroom or helping,” she noted. “My mom makes stuff for my classroom all the time.”
She lives in the same neighborhood as the school she works at and when her children were still school-aged, all of them attended the elementary school.
“My oldest is 25, and my youngest is 16 and they all attended Panorama. So, when the opening for a life skills teacher came up, I knew it was for me,” Juarez said.
It can be a physically demanding job, she noted. Aside from dancing, sometimes she has to chase the children or block them off. But she has her own routine to stay agile.
“I get a massage every month because being a special education teacher can be hard on your body, especially when you’ve got kids with behaviors that sometimes you might have to chase or block,” she said. “My family and my dog Kaiser know that when I get home, I may need a little bit of time to read a book.”
There are other challenges as well, particular to staffing.
“Our paraprofessionals are passionate and have to be excited to do the job because there’s not a real financial incentive,” she said. “Finding the right people to work as part of my team in my classroom to help the kids is challenging.”
Though she does have family help, Juarez also reaches out to other special education teachers, coordinators, and related service providers to foster collaboration and share resources.
“It takes a team to help these kids progress through the school system,” she added. “I don’t like to work by myself when I know there’s someone else I could be working with to come up with better ideas.”
Her innovative and inclusive approach has garnered support from her colleagues. Tylie Lamb, Special Education Coordinator, and Teryl Davis, who have worked with Rabecca for the past four years, expressed their gratitude.
“Rabecca’s dedication and unique approach to special education have set her apart as a remarkable educator,” Lamb and Davis said in an email. “Her recognition with the CEC Special Education Teacher Rising Star Award is a testament to her exceptional contributions and unwavering commitment to her students and the broader educational community.”
That shining exceptionalism is evident in one particular incident with a student.
“After about three years of working together and building our relationship, he gave me a huge hug and told me he loved me,” she recalled. “It was one of the most amazing experiences.”
Those types of inclusion mean everything to Juarez.
“They do reading groups with their general education peers if they’re capable, participate in different reading activities throughout the school, and join science fairs,” she said. “Everything that is available to their non-disabled peers is greatly encouraged for them to participate in.”
During April’s Autism Awareness Month, Juarez leads a Disability Awareness Week on campus, educating students on different disabilities through videos, books and activities.
It’s really helped build acceptance throughout the school because the kids are a lot more understanding of why some behaviors occur. We’ve done it for two years and will do it again next year. We’re trying to push it district-wide. This past year, we had three elementary schools participate, all with amazing results.
Despite her success, she says there is still much work to be done.
“I feel like I have a lot of work to do in elementary because there’s a lot of foundation that can be built at this age,” Juarez said. “I’m excited to help these kids make it through post high and be around to see where they end up.”
Juarez is not the only one who loves Panorama Elementary. While she may have some bias because her employment and housing are within walking distance, she recalled a former educator who once described the school as “a hidden gem” within the Washington County School District.
“Panorama’s general education teachers are so supportive and pro-inclusion, which is a huge part of why the kids do so well,” she added. “They are welcome in any classroom they walk into.”
Juarez says something amazing happens in her classroom every day.
“A kid does something they’ve never done before, or I get a hug I never thought would come,” she said. “It’s always worth it.”
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