A call to serve leads Juliana D’Alessandro to teacher of the year honor

After six years of teaching at St. Mark School in Catonsville, Juliana D’Alessandro has found her niche: upper elementary-age students – specifically fourth-grade students.

“It is such a formative time for them,” D’Alessandro said. “Definitely transition years. They’re starting to have more independence. They are a little more mature. Helping them through all that…it’s definitely a challenge.”

It is a challenge she has navigated well. In May, D’Alessandro was recognized as the Archdiocesan Elementary School Teacher of the Year.

“Her colleagues describe her all the same way – humble, compassionate, faithful, generous and she doesn’t seek recognition,” Terry Ferro, principal of St. Mark, said. “She sees a need and feels a call to serve.”

Service, D’Alsesandro said, has always been a big part of her life. A member of Church of the Nativity in Timonium, she is part of a young adult group and helps organize service trips to First Fruits Farm and Baltimore Hunger Program. Teaching, D’Alessandro said, is “a way to make a difference and help people.”

A native of Long Island, New York D’Alessandro is a graduate of The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., where she majored in elementary education. She came to Baltimore as part of Operation TEACH (Teachers Enlisted to Advance Catholic Heritage), a post-graduate program through Notre Dame of Maryland University that gives novice educators an opportunity to earn an advanced degree while living in a communal setting and working in an archdiocese school.

“It was nice I had that opportunity to collaborate and vent, and have that support,” D’Alessandro said, noting that it was especially helpful during her first year at St. Mark when the pandemic arrived, “Because everybody was in it and didn’t know what they were doing, it helped.”

She has learned a lot from her experiences, she said, and is proud of the growth she has accomplished over the years, including participating in the school’s Positive Behavior plan and coaching the school’s Battle of the Books Club.

“It is definitely a challenging and very rewarding job at the same time,” D’Alessandro said. “I have grown in confidence.”

At St. Mark, she is very thankful for all of the support her colleagues and the administration provide her.

“The sense of community is very strong,” D’Alessandro said. “Everybody really cares for each other and helps each other. That is what makes our school so great.”

Email Katie V. Jones at kjones@CatholicReview.org

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