The Sacramento County Office of Education (SCOE) is one of 58 county offices located throughout the state. Approximately 650 regular and more than 950 temporary and substitute SCOE staff work year-round providing services that complement and supplement those offered by public school districts in Sacramento County.
Classified Employees of the Month Team
Melody Tabada, a financial analyst, was nominated by Financial Services Coordinator Becky Taylor for her contributions to the Sacramento County Office of Education. Ms. Tabada works at the Mather Support Business Services building, providing support to numerous high-impact SCOE programs, including AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), Cal-SOAP (California Student Opportunity & Access Program), Private School Services, K-12 Reading/Language Arts, K-12 Math, and C-SAPA (Center for Student Assessment & Program Accountability). Her responsibilities include budgeting, monitoring revenues and expenditures, providing billings to the granting agencies, and keeping department staff and directors updated on the status of their budgets by providing financial reports and assistance where needed. Her supervisor says, "Melody is very organized, conscientious, and is well-respected by her peers and the departments she supports. She is very detailed, and her work is accurate and complete. We are very fortunate to have Melody on our Financial Services team." Ms. Tabada has been employed by the Sacramento County Office of Education since July 1998.
Claudia Caspar, a para-educator, was nominated by Special Education Principal Mary Jo Johnson for her contributions to SCOE. Ms. Caspar works with SCOE's upper-grade elementary class for students with severe disabilities at the Prairie Elementary School—West Campus, which is located in the Elk Grove Unified School District. She provides instructional support to the students in teacher Holly Landwehr's class. Ms. Caspar's responsibilities vary from helping students develop communication systems to feeding and helping students with their personal needs. According to her supervisor, she is an exemplary employee because of the positive attitude she brings to the job as well as her reliability and work ethic. "She treats each student with respect and as an individual," says Ms. Caspar's supervisor. "She has conversations with each student while she works with him or her. She is a team player and enjoys the people she works with. The Sacramento County Office of Education, the Special Education Department and the students are fortunate to have an employee like Claudia who brings such positive energy into the classroom." Ms. Caspar has been employed by the Sacramento County Office of Education since August 1990.
Certificated Employee of the Month
Linda Greer, a special education teacher of preschool students, was nominated by Special Education Principal Sharon Holstege for her contributions to SCOE. Ms. Greer supports children with significant disabilities who are fully included in the Head Start program at Hillsdale Head Start in the Foothill Farms area. Her supervisor says, "Linda is a masterful teacher who is always finding teachable moments for her children. Under her guidance, students have demonstrated tremendous progress. She works diligently to create a quality preschool experience for each child. Her work benefits not only students who receive support from SCOE, but all of the Head Start program at her site." Ms. Greer's supervisor lauds her as a "wonderful resource for parents. She develops strong, supportive relationships with families, which creates foundations for the future in regard to home-school collaboration." Her supervisor concludes by commending Ms. Greer's pro-active approach: "Before a child is even in her class, Linda has already seen the child at home, talked to parents about their goals for their child, often gone to a therapy session to see how others are working with the child, and so much more!" Ms. Greer has been employed by the Sacramento County Office of Education since August 2002.