After graduating from Wheaton, Jill Strandson Cote ‘01 taught second grade at the Paul Cuffee Charter School in Providence, RI. In this role, she built strong relationships with families, established an inclusive classroom, served as the teacher liaison for Spanish and English parent groups, taught afterschool writing skills workshops, and invited author Kathleen O’Dean to speak to her class.  Jill left Paul Cuffee School to complete her Masters of Social Work program at Wheelock College in Boston, where she also interned as a therapist at a bilingual childcare center.  In order to gain more clinical experience before returning to the classroom, jill worked in the children’s intensive services program of The Providence Center, a community mental health facility.  In 2006, Jill had the opportunity to return to the classroom as a second grade teacher at the Learning Community Charter School (LCCS) in Central Falls, RI.  Last year, she became a math/writing specialist at the school.  In addition to collaborating with LCCS teachers, Jill has mentored aspiring educators from Brown University, Smith College, and Americorps.  She looks forward to what the next school year holds!