Discovery Elementary
Sunrise, FL
Mrs. Cartagena started her career in education 22 years ago, teaching 5th grade. When her daughter was 3, a speech pathologist told her that her daughter would need a device to speak. She didn’t want her daughter to use a device, but the therapist said if she didn’t follow her recommendations, she would need to find another therapist. Mrs. Cartagena did just that and became one herself! She went back to school and earned a masters degree in speech therapy and helped her daughter overcome her speech difficulties. Today, she enjoys paying it forward to other families and teaches in an early intervention program where she is both her students’ speech pathologist and preschool teacher. She makes a difference in each of their lives by helping her students communicate more effectively and find their voice. In addition to helping her students, she also mentors other educators and future speech pathologists to set them up for success. Please consider voting for her. She is a very dedicated educator and truly is the best of the best!