Dr. Jerry A.

Caster
932 29th Street
West Des Moines, IA 50265
515-225-2016
cjeanjerry@aol.com
November 4, 2014
To Whom It May Concern:

Re: Ellen Calder

It is a pleasure to write a letter of recommendation for Ellen. I am her student teaching

supervisor at Drake University. Prior to working with student teachers, I was a special
education supervisor and then principal in the Des Moines Schools. Among other things, my
responsibilities involved supervising the early childhood special education program for the
Des Moines Schools and later Head Start classrooms in my building.
Ellen is more than half way through her student teaching. She has completed a preschool
placement at Crestview Elementary School in the West Des Moines Schools. In that setting she
worked with four year old children attending school in the morning or afternoon. Each of the
two groups had students enrolled based on an ELL status, special education status, or, on a
paid basis. She demonstrated excellent skills with both groups. The teacher was a skilled and
experienced teacher with Head Start and special education experience. She was the special
education teacher and was responsible for IEPs, behavior plans and special education
paperwork. Ellen had the chance to be involved in all of these things. Both the am and pm
groups had at least one student with serious behavior problems and Ellens experience made
her an asset in designing and implementing behavior programs.
Ellens second placement has been in a kindergarten classroom in the Des Moines Schools. In
that setting she is working with a skilled teacher and is experiencing a great deal of success.
Having just completed the mid-term evaluation, she meets all standards and is already
exemplary for some of them. By the end of the semester she will be exemplary in many more
of the standards. She is that skilled.
I enjoy seeing Ellen work with children. She displays enthusiasm along with clear focus on
what she wants to accomplish. Her past experiences has given her a level of confidence in
working with children seldom seen in student teachers. At the same time, I have seen a
professional maturity that also exceeds what I generally see in student teachers. This has
permitted her to work well with the teachers and the teacher associates in her student
teaching. It is clear that she loves being in a classroom with children.
Having supervised programs for young children, Ellen is a person that I would hire. She is selfdirected, skilled and works well with others. Great attributes for a beginning teacher!
Please feel free to contact me if you have questions.
Sincerely,
Jerry A. Caster
Jerry A. Caster, Supervisor of Student Teaching
Drake University