Meet Your child’s Team
All staff are required to complete the 40-hour training in Applied Behavior Analysis as a Registered Behavior Technician, a 22-hour ABA-based crisis management training, and social/emotional professional development.
Administrative team
Ms. Kris
Founder, CEO/Executive Director, Reading Specialist, Certified School Counselor, Positive Behavior Support Specialist, Certified Special Education Teacher, Kristina@azbreakthroughacademy.org
Tel: 866-620-9380, ext. 1
Kristina is currently completing her second Masters of Science degree. This M.S. Ed. degree is in Transformative Teaching and Learning with a Certificate of Specialization in Social-Emotional Learning, Mindfulness, and Yoga, a Social-Emotional Learning Facilitator (SEL*F) Certification, and T.E.A.C.H. Method Certification (trauma-informed teaching). Kristina also holds a Master’s of Science degree in Marriage and Family Therapy with a specialty in Play Therapy and a certificate in Child Trauma from the Harris Institute. She also holds a post-graduate certificate in Positive Behavior Intervention & Support (PBIS)/Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), a certificate in Structured Literacy specializing in the treatment of Dyslexia, a post-baccalaureate certificate in Special Education, and a state certification in School Counseling. Kristina has numerous specialized trainings targeted to benefit the learners at Breakthrough Academy including the highly-regarded, intensive Morningside Academy Summer School Institute to study Precision Teaching and Mathetics (from which Direct Instruction is derived). Learn more about our Director here.
Executive Administrative Assistant & Billing Specialist
Leighann@azbreakthroughacademy.org
Tel: 866-620-9380, ext. 3
Mrs. Leigh Ann works hard supporting the operations at Breakthrough including billing and tuition! She has dedicated her service to Breakthrough for the last ten years! Mrs. Leigh Ann has a passion for helping families with special needs and is a mother of two young adults children who successfully live with learning differences.
Mrs. Bernice
Assessment Coordinator, Special Education Teacher, and Reading Specialist, Bernice@azbreakthroughacademy.org
Mrs. Bernice has over 25 years experience as a Special Education Teacher. Her expertise is in the Science of Reading and has completed the LTRS Structured Literacy training, but she is skilled and talented with all aspects of education. Mrs. Bernice is currently completing her M.S. Ed. degree is in Transformative Teaching and Learning with a Certificate of Specialization in Social-Emotional Learning, Mindfulness, and Yoga, a Social-Emotional Learning Facilitator (SEL*F) Certification, and T.E.A.C.H. Method Certification (trauma-informed teaching). She has also been trained in Precision Teaching by the prestigious Morningside Academy. Mrs. Bernice is our Reading Instructor and also oversees the collection of performance data that helps our team (and learners) make decisions. Mrs. Bernice has worked at Breakthrough for three years.
Mrs. Bernice has two grown children with Autism and is passionate about providing quality education to children with disabilities.
Mr. Baxter
Assistant Operations Director, Baxter@azbreakthroughacademy.org
Mr. Baxter helps our entire school stay organized and operational! Please reach out to him for tours, new enrollments, transportation needs, field trip information, and other school-related matters. He is proud to be a part of a school that makes a positive difference for its learners! Photo coming soon!
Miss Helayna, School Secretary
Miss Helayna is talented at multitasking which is a BIG help to our little school! She keeps our building organized and ensures our scheduling and planning are up-to-date! Miss Helayna is currently studying for her undergraduate degree and has part-time hours with Breakthrough. We appreciate her tremendous help! Photo coming soon!
Instructional TEAM
Ms. Rendi, Instructor,
Rendi@azbreakthroughacademy.org
Ms. Rendi is a former Registered Behavior Technician and brings vast experience in behavior management to the classroom. Ms. Rendi has worked at Breakthrough for three years and is our “FLEX” (social emotional learning) Manager. She has been trained in all of the FLEX curricula and in Precision Teaching by the prestigious Morningside Academy. Ms. Rendi is currently enrolled in a dual teaching certification program for both general and special education certification. Her classroom is filled with fun and collaboration! Ms. Rendi is a mother to a child with multiple disabilities and is dedicated to our field!
Ms. Kim, Instructor
Ms. Kim has eight years of experience as a Special Education Teacher working for both public and private special day schools. She holds a Bachelor in Special Education with a specialty as a Learning Behavior Specialist. She also has training in as experience as a tutor for executive functioning. Ms. Kim loves teaching middle school and science! We are so glad to have her on our team! (Photo coming soon!)
Ms. Joelle,M.Ed in Curriculum and instruction, instructor
Ms. Joelle holds a Masters degree in Education, specializing in Curriculum and Instruction. She has been a general education elementary teacher for 24 years working in special education for the last five years in both private and public schools. She has training in Structured Literacy and loves helping our elementary learners master Reading! She adds so much to our team and our learners benefit greatly from her expertise! (Photo coming soon!)
Ms. Maryam, Instructor
Ms. Maryam has a dual teaching certification in both general and special education. She has worked with early learners in a self-contained, specialized setting and loves it! Before becoming a teacher, Ms. Maryam worked for three years as a behavior support and paraprofessional and with the infant/toddler population for many years prior to that. She loves children and we are fortunate to have her on our team! (Photo coming soon!)
Mrs. Christina, Instructor
Mrs. Christina is an experienced educator with over 12 years working with children with disabilities. She understands the importance of and is passionate about teaching independent living skills. Her class targets Nutrition and healthy cooking but also teaches Hygiene and valuable life skills. Our learners love her hands-on class! As a mother of children with special needs, Mrs. Christina has a special place in her heart for our learners.
Mr. sam, PE Instructor
Mr. Sam loves working with our learners! He has the most loving heart! He is patient and passionate about teaching the importance of physical self-care and the skill of rule-governed play to our learners. Mr. Sam was one of our first graduates at Breakthrough Academy and uses his first-hand experience with our programs to support our learners.