Faculty Bios

Robin Paredes-Brown, Oak Kindergarten Teacher      robinp@communityschoolforcreativeeducation.org

Ms. Paredes Brown was born in Burlington, Vermont and grew up in Madison, Wisconsin. She lived in Chile as a young child and spent her senior year of high school in Spain and junior year of college in Bologna, Italy. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish, International Relations and Ibero-American studies from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. In 1995, she earned a multiple subject teaching credential and high school Spanish credential from San Francisco State and served as a bilingual and immersion third grade teacher for four years before having children. In 2007 she received a Waldorf teaching credential from Rudolf Steiner College and taught Spanish for two years as well as substituted for six years in independent Waldorf schools in the Bay Area. She currently lives in Daly City with her husband and two sons.

 

Mariena Kuoch, Laurel Kindergarten Teacher      marienak@communityschoolforcreativeeducation.org

Ms. Kuoch (last name pronounced "coach") is a native Californian and also a child of Cambodian refugees. As a child, Ms. Kuoch’s parents emphasized the importance of getting an education, and as a result, she was an student who went on to attend the University of California at Berkeley, where she was surprised to find she struggled through her courses. It wasn't until she took a sociology of education course that she began to understand the huge disparities in our education system. Ms. Kuoch taught herself the skills to be successful in college and went on to graduate with a bachelors of art in social welfare. Ms. Kuoch wants to affect social change and knows there is a great need for high-quality teachers and everyday in the classroom and works to not only instill our students with knowledge, but also with essential life skills so that they are prepared to traverse problems, situations, college, and their future career paths.

Monica Zarazua, First Grade Teacher      monicaZ@communityschoolforcreativeeducation.org

Ms. Zarazua was born in Oscoda, Michigan.  She has a bilingual multiple subject teaching certification and an M.F.A. in creative writing.

 

 

 

 

 

Kathryn Wilson, Second Grade Teacher       kathrynW@communityschoolforcreativeeducation.org

Ms. Wilson is a native Californian, who grew up in a rural town in the Central Valley.  She has been a teacher in Oakland and San Francisco since 1999.  Ms. Wilson lives in Oakland and loves being a part of this diverse city.  Before teaching, she was a recreation supervisor running after school programming and youth centers.

 

 

 

 

Delana Hill, Third Grade Teacher              
delanah@communityschoolforcreativeeducation.org

Ms. Hill has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education and Special Education from Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky. She received her Waldorf training from Kentahten teacher training in Louisville and hopes to continue training at the Steiner College in Sacramento. Her teaching experience began in the inner city of Louisville at a Waldorf- inspired public school.and her desire to continue learning led her to Oakland to become a part of the Community School family. A critical thinker, she often felt confined by the ways of the traditional classroom. When Ms. Hill was introduced to the Waldorf philosophy in her undergraduate teacher training, her passion for learning was reignited. She hopes to bring her passion for life to the students at Community School, and inpirethem to push forth into the world with empathetic hearts and critical minds in order to make positive change for our future.

 

Monisha Peters, Fourth Grade Teacher       monishap@communityschoolforcreativeeducation.org

Ms. Peters is a Bay Area resident, raised in Hayward and she currently resides in San Leandro. She is a recent graduate from the University of Phoenix with a Masters in Teacher Education with a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential and has obtained her undergrad in History from California State University, East Bay in 2005. She has worked in the Oakland Unified School District for four years as an Intervention Specialist aiding children on the autism spectrum in full inclusion classrooms in grades K-5th. She has lived and worked in the Bay Area her whole life and knows the importance of a great education for all our children, regardless of race, creed, ability, or background in our communities both now and years to come.

 

Brenda Kangas, Resource Specialist   brendak@communityschoolforcreativeeducation.org

Brenda has a BS in Elementary Education from Northern Arizona University. When she moved to CA, she earned a MA in Reading and Language from UC Berkeley. Throughout her career, she passed various tests as requirements for teaching changed, along with a CLAD certification for teaching second language learners in a classroom. In 2006, Brenda went back to school and earned a Special Education credential through coursework at Cal State Hayward. She has experience teaching 6th grade Language Arts on the Navajo reservation, Reading and Math Resource in San Pablo, and English as a Second Language. After her children were old enough, she went back to work, and worked as a classroom aide, a Special Education aide and a Library Assistant in Piedmont over 12 years.  She even was a Resource Specialist in the Hayward District for 3 years.  That is not to mention her many non-teaching jobs.  She enjoys reading, walking, and browsing through little stores in a new towns.  She also enjoys spending time with her family, friends, sweetheart and cat. Oh, and Facebook.