Her Story
About Marina
My journey into education began when I was just 10 years old, growing up in a small town outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I participated in a community softball league where I met a young lady who was culturally deaf. Observing how the players and coaches interacted with her, something within me stirred. Nobody knew how to communicate with her, and people often over-articulated or raised their voices very loudly, as if that would help. I took it upon myself to teach myself sign language. I went home and told my mom I knew there was a way to communicate with her, and she bought me a basic sign language dictionary. I taught myself a few words, and when I saw her at the next practice, I introduced myself and asked her how she was, and a flurry of signs came back. Three years later, her mother told me that I should become a teacher of the deaf, and it was truly one of those moments where I just knew that was what I needed to do with my life, and I never wavered from that point. Today, I work at Region 4 Education Service Center in Texas as an Assistant Director of Special Education, serving as program administrator for the largest regional day school program for the deaf in the state. We provide services to over 500 students every day across 6 local school systems, all from birth to age 22, and they're deaf, hard of hearing, or deafblind. I'm also a university instructor at the University of Houston and teach for Texas Tech University from time to time as an adjunct instructor. I'm the president of the Texas Association of Parents and Educators of the Deaf (TAPET) and chairperson of our Texas Statewide Conference on the Education of the Deaf, now in my fourth year as president. For me, it's never really been about accolades. It's more about legacy building, seeing the growth of this program from one district member when we started in 2012 to now having 6 school systems participating. I live at a crossroads where not many people sit, where I'm a program administrator for a special education program, I teach about special education in the evenings, and I'm also the mom of two twice-exceptional sons. I can see it all from various perspectives, and when I go into these rooms, whether giving testimony to the legislature here in Texas or going into an IEP meeting for a family, I'm always cognizant of my impact. I'm here representing 500-plus families. That's the name on the back of my jersey.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Marina
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my humor. I always like to tell my team, the work is hard, but we don't have to make it harder. So just trying to be positive, have a good attitude. I mean, you can always laugh about anything, most anything. Your two choices are to laugh or to cry, but we can't do that, so we keep going.
02What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
What matters most to me is being a voice for families and students in rooms that they're not in. I feel like there's a great trust that is put upon me. I live at a crossroads where not many people sit, where I'm a program administrator for a special education program, I teach about special education in the evenings, and I'm also the mom of two twice-exceptional sons. I can see it all from various perspectives, and so when I go into these rooms, whether it be giving testimony to the legislature here in Texas or going into an IEP meeting for a family, I'm always cognizant of my impact. I'm here representing 500-plus families. That's the name on the back of my jersey. It's not me. For me, it's about legacy building. Did I create something better that students are going to benefit from? Did I build something better that families are going to benefit from? And if I haven't, then I haven't done my job. I should be able to walk away from it, and it should be built to last.
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