As the 2023-2024 school year came to a close, Colton Elementary School recognized retiring teachers Beverly Parker and Debra Sahleen, as well as school attendance secretary Annette Sapienza.
The three served the district for a combined 71 years and sent emails to share with readers:
From: Beverly Parker
I have taught in the Colton School District for all my 31 years in education. It is very rare these days for anyone to stay in the same career, much less the same school and district, for that amount of time. That said, several of my colleagues have done the same thing and will continue teaching for Colton. That longevity and loyalty should be noticeably appreciated.
I spent 18 years teaching second grade, 11 years teaching fifth grade, and the last two teaching a fourth/fifth grade blend. I have taught hundreds of students in that time, some of them twice. I have lost count of how many children of former students I have taught. I have been a peripheral part of the Colton community for three decades.
It has been a privilege to work for the Colton School District. I have always been proud of our accomplishments in our small, rural district. We have fewer resources than many districts but still manage to give our students a solid education. The staff in the elementary building is truly like a family. We have been through good times and challenging times together. The memories of teaching in Colton will be cherished. The relationships I have formed with students, colleagues, and community members will be fondly remembered.
If I were to share any last “words,” I would say this, “lessen screen time, get outside, be curious, be kind.”
From: Debra Sahleen
I have been teaching for 25 years, 19 of those years at Colton. I have taught most of those years teaching third grade, but I was also our Title IA coordinator and teacher for four years and taught first grade for two years, third grade for 11 years, and now in my last two years I have been our kindergarten-fifth grade reading specialist.
For the last several years, since the passage of Senate Bill 1003, I have been our dyslexia compliance officer. I have also served as our co-district testing coordinator for the last three years as well as served on the FIT and MTSS teams.
Within the district, I am best known as the "data queen" and "reading teacher." I track all our data at CES and provide reports for Mr. Alba (our principal) and the board of directors as well as supporting students with reading difficulties.
I would like all of our students and families to know it has been a true honor and blessing to be a teacher and to serve as many students and families as I have. It is even more rewarding to see young students in the school, whose parents I had in third grade - full circle moment. My life has been richly blessed by all the students and families of Colton, and I am grateful to have been a part of such an outstanding school district.
Annette Sapienza:
Annette Sapienza has served the district for 22 years as attendance secretary. She said she began volunteering in the high school and then subbing for secretaries, librarians and educational assistants.
Sapienza said that somehow during that time she was talked into taking the job of temporary secretary for the high school counselor’s office. She then she has been the attendance secretary at the elementary school and later the attendance secretary position was split half between the elementary and high schools. She said she enjoyed the chance to watch kids go through school from their very first day to their very last day.
“My goal each day was to be kind,” Sapienza said. “I would be the first person students saw when they walked into the school and I wanted to be sure to greet everyone, every day, with a smile.”
One more district retiree, Craig Cervantes, will be featured in a future Colton Corner.
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