Degree(s): I have earned an Educational Specialist in K-12 Leadership, an M.S. Ed with an emphasis in Curriculum and Instruction, a B.S. in English Literature with an emphasis in Secondary Education, an AA in Liberal Arts, an Associates in General Education, and two endorsements,  Reading and English as Second Language. I am currently going back to school for a Masters in Child and Adolescent Psychology. 

 

Welcome to Central High School, home of the Bobcats.  My name is Mary Ellen Donahue, and I am an English teacher here at Central, where I also went to high school back in the '80s.  It was back in high school, where I learned from some talented teachers how vital reading and writing are in the job market. Moreover, my instructors taught me a love of reading that reaches far beyond the textbooks. 

 

I see in my students, the same desire I felt as a student--the desire to experience life.  One of the best ways to experience life is to read about the lives of other individuals and the events that affect them. Reading allows students to sympathize as well as empathize with a world outside of their own. Writing will enable students to communicate their beliefs, their points-of-view, and their thoughts with evidence.  Therefore, students will be expected to analyze both fiction and nonfiction text, supporting their opinions with evidence.  I want my students to use what they learn in my English class to read their textbooks and other academic information critically. I want them to be able to thrive outside the classroom in the career market, fulfilling whatever dreams they may have for themselves.  

 

To help my students accomplish their goals, I make myself available to students as much as possible.  I am available by appointment before 7:30 AM or after 3:30 PM; I am also available for individual tutoring during advisory, 4th hour, in my classroom.    I am in room 868, in the north-east of the campus.  Please check-in at the front office and feel free to come to see where and what your students are learning.

 

In my class, I utilize the District Freshmen Curriculum as well as AVID strategies to enhance the learning of skills. I provide individual attention when possible and group learning so that your student gets individualized instruction. I expect students to take what they learn inside my classroom and use it in their content-area classes as well in their lives outside of school.

 

For homework,  I encourage my students to watch the news in whatever language they feel comfortable to build their background knowledge.  Any other homework assigned will be a result of not finishing it in class. 

 

If you ever have questions or comments, please feel free to call me or text me at 623.980.9465 or email me at donahue@phoenixunion.org. Thank you so much for the interest you take in your student(s) education.