C.U.R.E Alumni Working in Community
Several C.U.R.E. alumni are working together in schools across Syracuse City School District. Adriana Garcia ('23), Sybele Delacruz ('23), Brianna Kendall ('19) are all teaching elementary grades at Van Duyn Elementary. In Fall 2023, they were joined by Caesare (German) who is completing her student teaching in Grade 4. Jayson Rivera ('22) and Liz Hernandez ('18) are colleagues at Seymour Dual Language Academy. Jayson is in his second year as a PE teacher at Seymour and is enjoying the ways that he is being known and recognized by families in the community. Jayson commented that "parents are so supportive and they all want the best for their kids.”
C.U.R.E. Graduates Practicing Inclusion
Joao (JP) Goncalves is a spring 2021 graduate in Physical Education with a concentration in Adapted Physical Education. Following his graduation from Cortland, he was awarded a full scholarship and stipend to complete a prestigious U.S. Department of Education-funded two-year master’s program in adapted physical education at the University of Utah. In addition to participating in graduate research there, he helped revitalize the university’s UFIT “swim and gym” program, which grew to serve over 100 children with disabilities under his guidance. He credits the skills he learned as the C.U.R.E. intern for the Syracuse City School District’s Building Men program for preparing him for his success in this endeavor. JP was inspired to teach by his high school teacher, Michael Witkowich ('05), himself a former C.U.R.E. scholar. As a new teacher, JP credits C.U.R.E.'s early field experience for providing him with a glimpse of "the real nuances of what teaching really looks like from the inside" that has proven essential to his current success in the classroom.
