LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Judith Gonzalez-Baruch was nominated by an anonymous colleague.

Ms. Judith, as everybody knows her, is one of the most loving and patient teachers on the Garfield campus.  She teaches special needs students, but exceeds her job title. She not only works with her students to help them learn academics, but also takes the time to teach them the life skills and knowledge they need to know in order to live independently.  In the short time she has been a teacher, she has changed each and every life of not only her students, but their parents, as well. She has taught their parents that their children are capable of much more than people expect from them.  She doesn't enable her students, but teaches them how to advocate for themselves. 

It is challenging for anyone to manage and educate students who have different disabilities and needs, but she was built for this career. She always has a smile on her face and is always seeking ways to integrate her students with the rest of the school population. She has expanded autism awareness on campus from a one-day event to an integral part of the school culture. Her students are included in pep rallies, and for the past two years, she has worked with the football coach to have an autism awareness night at a football game, where her students could walk on the field and be honorary captains. She has done an outstanding job for her students, their families, and the entire community!