Name: Kari Leong
School: Queen Kaahumanu Elementary
Subject: English Language Learners
Grade: 5th
Island: O’ahu
“My ELL students struggle with the ability to retain new information that they are learning because sometimes it gets lost in translation. Through art, I believe this fellowship can help me teach them a new way to learn and express themselves…”
Kari teaches at a school where twenty three different language are represented. She works with students who speak a language other than English, and they are often overwhelmed by the new culture, language, and demands of the classroom. She would like to develop different ways of working with these students, enabling them to more comfortably explore their new surroundings. She believes that nurturing their creativity and imaginations is central to this. She looks forward to working with other motivated, curious educators who like to take risks and try new things. Kari also mentors new ELL teachers, providing them with strategies on how to integrate art into the learning process. She seeks to inspire other teachers to develop students as a whole child using cross interdisciplinary subjects. She has a B.A. in Journalism and Elementary Education from Gonzaga University, a Masters degree in Administration, Curriculum, and Instruction from Gonzaga University, and and an Educational Doctorate (EdD) from the University of Hawaii, Manoa.