North Fayette Elementary special education teacher Christina Ardillo is driven to help her students become the best they can be.
Ardillo found her calling thanks to teachers who meant the world to her family. Her youngest brother has a learning disability, and the loving care he received at Sandy Creek High opened her eyes.
“I absolutely loved the process and the teachers that helped him grow,” she remembered.
She originally was a Dolphin for 6 years as a paraprofessional, including in the kindergarten classroom of now-Assistant Principal Dr. Claudette Lester. Dr. Lester encouraged her to push herself and go back for her masters. After working with the Mainstay program, this is Ardillo’s first year back at the school as a special education teacher.
“There is something very special about this school,” she said. “It always felt like home.”
A key piece of her role is constant communication with parents so they can share strategies and successes between the classroom and home.
“Everybody is working together to help these kids grow,” she said. “If a kid is doing really well at school or they’ve learned a new strategy to help them calm down, we definitely want to generalize to a different environment so that they’re able to be more successful trying different things.”
Ardillo is driven to help her students grow and get to where they need to be in life.
“My why is definitely being able to make an impact,” she said. “You realize that even the smallest thing that you’re doing makes an impact.”
“The Honor Role,” an official podcast for Fayette County Public Schools, features employees, rotating through key stakeholders, including teachers, staff, nurses, custodians, cafeteria workers, and bus drivers. Join us as we dive in and learn about their journeys, their inspirations, and their whys.
Episodes are available on all major podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and promoted on the social media channels of Fayette County Public Schools.
Episodes will also be available here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2200811.
Posted 5/6/2025
