At Triangle Lake Montessori School in Greensboro, NC, third- through fifth-grade learning disability and literacy specialist Kimberly James has been changing kids’ lives by collapsing racial and socio-economic barriers for her students and the school at large. She stays at the cutting edge of research and strategies and prompts her peers to do the same. James implements research-based strategies that help solidify and enhance literacy. She meticulously tracks student progress while building enduring relationships with children and their parents. Additionally, she conducts math nights for families, providing them with math activities that help bridge the learning process from school to home.
James spearheaded the school’s current reading program. As a result, her students have demonstrated growth in literacy and shown appreciable gains over four years in reading and math end-of-grade assessments. What’s more, the pass rate in reading and math improved from 28.6 percent in 2005–2006 to 60 percent in 2008–2009.
In addition to helping implement the schoolwide reading initiative, James has held memberships on numerous teams, including the school leadership and budget committees. She serves on the Superintendent’s Teacher Advisory Council, the North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University Board of Advisors, and is a cooperating teacher with Greensboro College and High Point University. James also writes grants for and works closely with the Parent Teacher Association.
