Mendoza is the guidance counselor of Oleai Elementary School since last school year, and prior to joining the turtle family, she was the counselor for Hopwood Jr. High School for the past six years.
As a counselor, Mendoza has major accomplishments that include the following:
She helped form the counseling program at Oleai Elementary School and has worked hard to model the counseling program of the American School Counselors Association.
Aside from her duties and responsibilities as school guidance counselor, she has been actively involved in the Project Familia Giya Marianas program, which aims at educating parents on childhood obesity.
She has volunteered to attend professional development sessions that will enable her to work in tandem with our classroom teachers.
This past summer, she participated in the deaf and hard of hearing training sessions in which teachers, staff, and parents learn how to sign to communicate with deaf and hard of hearing students.
She also participated in the Classroom Instruction that Works, a research-based program offered by the Mid-Continent Regional Educational Laboratories.
Mendoza does not limit herself to providing support services for the school only. She has extended her assistance to the entire counselors of the CNMI by offering ways they can improve their counseling programs at their respective schools.
Mendoza had been working closely with other schools to share the program that she was able to establish at OES.
The program that she was able to establish is called “Lunch Buddies,” which was created to assist students with autism develop their social skills.
