Sondra Chen

I count it a privilege to be teaching grades 6-8 Social Studies at Holy Spirit and am excited for my first year teaching in a Catholic school!

I graduated from Miami University in Ohio with an Elementary/Middle School Education degree, and later got my masters in Education from Lesley University.  At Miami I met my husband, Patrick, and we started a family soon after. When our three children were old enough, I began substitute teaching and taught Pre-K for a year before we moved to the Appleton area.

Since the year 2000, I have mostly been a classroom teacher--the majority in Grade 4 at Classical School in Appleton, but also in Grade 3 at a British international school in Shanghai. More recently I taught Grades 8,10, and 11 Language Arts, Grade 9 Critical Reading/Writing, and both High School AP English Language and AP Literature courses at American international schools in Taiwan.  

After returning from eight years overseas last year, it felt both good and natural to get back into the schools subbing again. Children of all ages are truly a blessing from God! One thing that had a profound impact on me was subbing in the parochial schools recently and seeing the positive way Catholic schools build character and encourage godliness in the students. This really makes me happy to be teaching at Holy Spirit!

As for in my spare time, I love reading, hiking, gardening, and traveling. Mostly now I am just looking forward to a great year and getting to know the students, parents, and staff!