My name is Elizabeth Radday.  I am a mother, daughter, sister, wife and many other things.  I am also a teacher and a learner and these are essential pieces of my identity.  I have been teaching since 2001 when I started my first job teaching middle school math, Spanish and science in a small Catholic school in Camden, New Jersey.  Since I started kindergarten in 1984 there have been very few semesters in which I have not been enrolled in some sort of school or class.  I love school, learning, and reading...I'm a total nerd and I am ok with that.  I strive to read 100 books a year and usually get pretty close if I don't get all the way there.  I have several different degrees, and for the most part, once I've earned them I've gone on to do something mostly unrelated to them.  I have a bachelor's in Spanish and French...but went on to teach in a K-8 elementary school in New Jersey immediately after graduation.  I spent three years working on a master's in elementary education...but then stopped teaching for a few years to work with middle school students (and now high school students) and never stepped foot in an elementary classroom again.  Immediately after I earned my master's, I went on to get my doctorate and focused on urban math education...but just as I finished up that degree I moved to rural Connecticut to teach in the learning support program of a private boarding school.  Of course everything I have learned has played a part in what I do as a teacher and I use many of the things I've learned...I just haven't always followed the traditional path.

 

I taught at The Marvelwood School for ten years as a learning specialist and was the Director of Learning Support for most of that time.  I worked with students with and without learning disabilities to help them learn the skills and tools they need for high school and college success.  I did everything from watch kids clean out their backpacks and reorganize papers into folders to re-teach calculus content.  I helped write outlines for papers and taught students about apps for organization.  I read aloud for students with dyslexia and scribed for kids with dysgraphia.  Every day was different.  Every student was different.  But every day I knew that a student was going to make me smile and laugh and I was reminded by some success (small or large) why I loved my job.

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Recently I started a new job at EdAdvance, a regional education service center in CT.  EdAdvance does a lot of different things, but I work in the Skills21 department on research grants.  Skills21 hosts an annual Expo Fest where students bring their year long Innovation Challenge Projects to a statewide competition.  It's best described as a Shark Tank-like event for students.  

 

When not working I have a few hobbies that take up other time.  I play clarinet and saxophone.  I used to coach rock climbing and still enjoy it when I have time.  I love to knit and sew and do crafts.  

 

When I'm not working I love to spend time with my two daughters, husband and family.