April 24, 2014

Dear educator,

Having served as Veronica Longs mentor teacher during the 2013/14 year I ve been able to
witness her exceptional ability as an educator and feel confident that she is well equipped and
prepared for a teaching position. I strongly recommend her as an educator and ask that you highly
consider inviting her to join your educational team.
Veronica and I worked collaboratively in our third grade classroom at Martin Luther King, Jr.
Elementary School in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Veronica demonstrated maturity, responsibility, and
professionalism. Her genuine and obvious zeal towards educating young people was unique and really
stood out. From the start, Veronica made it clear that she truly desired to be a lifelong educator
and found great joy in helping all students learn. Through much self-reflection and professional
discussions, Veronica made tremendous growth that prepared her to be a strong educator. She
consistently self-reflects and continually seeks to improve. She is eager to begin her teaching
career. My students and I have greatly benefitted from the time she spent with us.
Veronica exhibited much strength at designing and enacting a series of connected lessons.
Through her work with several units of study, which included Everyday Mathematics units 7 & 8,
Light science unit, and our geography social studies unit, Veronica pieced together multiple lessons
with fluency and attention to detail. While planning and implementing her units, Veronica managed to
keep numerous essential items in mind. The units included formative and summative assessments.
Lessons and activities were thoughtful of various types of learners and enabled all students to learn.
Tremendous effort was placed into teaching core content factually, with great care, so that our
students were able to receive the necessary information, content, and strategies fairly and
accurately. Teacher moves were in place to foster and encourage more attentive listening &
interaction, which created a deeper level of engagement, involvement, and understanding. Outcomes
and objectives were connected to the Common Core State Standards. Veronica used what she knew
about our particular group of students to drive her planning and instruction. Finally, and maybe most
importantly, Veronica made sure to include some fun along the way, utilizing her sense of humor and
playing upon her years of theater experience.
With confidence and poise, Ms. Long has modeled that she can successfully and effectively
educate and lead a group of children. She has the will, desire, and professionalism needed to be a
successful teacher. I highly recommend Ms. Long for a teaching position in your school system. Please
keep me in mind as a reference and please do contact me if I can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Phil Huyck
Phil Huyck, mentor teacher
734-994-1940/huyck@aaps.k12.mi.us
Kathy Morhous, Principal
morhous@aaps.k12.mi.us
3800 Waldenwood Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48105
734.994.1940
Ann Arbor Public Schools
Martin Luther King Elementary