SAN ANTONIO – The COVID-19 pandemic has been a challenge for many families, organizations and jobs. Luckily, like many professions, our teachers have stepped up and helped out.
We are highlighting some of the special teachers in our area who have gone above and beyond.
Iris Perez teaches special needs children at Wilson Elementary in the San Antonio Independent School District.
" I just love what I do,” Iris Perez, ACE teacher said. “My population. So these students are students that have been or are in the autism spectrum or are with Down Syndrome. So they have a unique learning styles.”
Perez is one of a kind, working hard to make sure her students are reaching their full potential.
“She’s a blessing to these students and to the community and to any child who comes in contact with her. I always tell her she can run her own autism center or things like that, because she she has so much wealth of information,” Lily Sanchez, an instructional assistant said.
Perez is the heart and soul of the classroom and her energy is amazing. Her expertise is unmatched.
“We need honesty need more teachers like her, that do honestly care from, you know, from the heart,” Sanchez said.
The past year has been unique as school buildings for a time closed down during the pandemic, but that didn’t stop Perez from making sure her students had everything they needed to stay on track. She worked with parents and even made deliveries.
“I made copies of all the material, a separate folder for each, math, reading and writing, and I delivered it to the parents so they would have the material. The parents and I have a really good communication. We collaborate. There’s a lot of teamwork,” she said.
Perez has so much passion and enthusiasm for her students and she says it stems from wanting to see them grow and learn.
“All children can learn. And the possibilities are endless. I, I can look at these children and I see I see their possibilities. I don’t see the disability. I see what they can do,” Perez said.