Tully Elementary School
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All schools and District offices are closed.
New teachers and principals report to their school.
Family and community resource fair at Palo Verde Magnet High School.
Teachers report to the University of Arizona for professional development sessions.
Beth DarnellKindergarten Teacher
Beth actually had a successful career in landscape architecture, but, once her own kids had grown up and gone to college, she realized she missed being around children. So, she decided to go into teaching – and has been at Tully Elementary ever since.
Beth, who has worked at the westside school for nine years, loves working at Tully because the staff is wonderful, the families are great, the campus has a garden, and she likes that the school is on the smaller side. Her favorite time of the school year is always at the end of year, when her students graduate.
“It’s just the most adorable day ever,” Beth said. “And it’s also very sad. It’s just so exciting to see the transformation between the beginning of the year [and the end].”
Ashley HartKindergarten Teacher
Ashley is 13 years into her career as an educator and is in her fourth year at Tully. She previously taught second grade but recently moved over to kindergarten and loves it.
She loves being a part of her students’ fundamental learning skills. For example, when Ashley sees a student tackle a reading assignment, she takes pride in knowing she helped them learn to read. She loves the excitement of everything that happens throughout the kindergarteners’ school year.
“I love how new everything is – new to them,” Ashley said. “They’re always excited to learn.”
Janet VarelaExceptional Education/Preschool Teacher
Janet is a 25-year Tucson Unified employee but started at the now-defunct Richey Elementary. When that school closed, she got placed at Tully. And she’s been there for 14 years now.
Some of her favorite parts of working at Tully include the community, families, and the multicultural population of students. And, because her students are as young as 3 years old, she loves that the Tully campus has so much to offer for all students.
She loves being able to have her students partake in the garden or even just have outdoor spaces to work from, as well as being part of the community. She believes that once students, and their families, see everything Tully has to offer, they are more likely to stay at Tully for the remainder of their elementary school years.