Marian Education Outreach

By Emily (TenBarge) Schnapf ‘08 My name is Emily (TenBarge) Schnapf (‘08) and I am the Executive Director for Marian Educational Outreach. MEO has a long lying history of supporting students in the Diocese of Evansville with unique learning needs. As a young child and going through private school, I never knew what it truly meant to learn differently than others. One thing was certain, I wanted to be them. I wanted to be the one who stood at the board and talked about the lessons and admired every move of what my teachers were trying to achieve each day, which I now know was to watch and embrace me as I was learning. Being very observant and watching every move they made, I began to learn what it meant to teach students in different ways.

In my middle school years, I started to witness and acknowledge my teachers’ efforts in making sure we all got what we needed as students. Going into high school, I saw this differentiation through teaching styles, hands on learning strategies, and tools and activities that required much more than a textbook. I had soon decided in high school that I wanted to be a Special Education teacher and knew my passion was with students who learned differently than their peers. I was fortunate enough to teach in the Diocese for eight years after I earned my Bachelor and Master’s in Special Education before I took my current position with Marian Educational Outreach. What a true blessing this role has been for me! I have always loved being with the students and watching them grow and reach their goals, but what better way to serve them than to provide them with the opportunity to grow and learn in a school where their siblings attend and where they go to church on the weekends? It does not get much better than that, in my opinion!

As the Director of Marian Educational Outreach, my personal mission that directly ties to the mission of MEO, is to be able to help and assist the leaders and teachers of our Diocese in opening doors for students who have disabilities, whether those be diagnosed disabilities or not. The true art of teaching is being able to mold lessons and daily rituals into something that truly touches all students. I have seen this as a teacher in buildings that I was working in and now I see it across the Diocese! What an amazing accomplishment for our Catholic Schools to be achieving. I have high hopes for the future of our Resource programs what our teachers are doing to touch each child who enters the doors. I believe they truly are working to better the lives of all students each and every day.

When I reflect on what it means to be able to have a child with a disability in a Catholic school, I can’t help but expand my thinking to the students who surround the child with disabilities. What does it mean for a child to be able to see the differences in the way others learn? Why is this exposure important and meaningful in the lives of students where school might come easy to them? Who are we impacting by opening our doors and accommodating the students who need extra support in the classroom? I think about how wonderful it must feel as mothers and fathers to be able to

drop your children off to the same school each day, knowing that they are all getting the best education possible. I pray that all parents and guardians of children with special needs find strength and hope in knowing that Marian Educational Outreach is not only working for the student, themselves, but for the entire community of our Catholic Schools. To help grow, shape, and nurture students takes a large village. A village that consists of amazing donors and advocates who generously give of their time and financial support to the mission of Marian Education Outreach.

We could not continue supporting students without this amazing community, that I consider a family… sticking together through hard times and ensuring that all children are loved and nurtured in their Catholic schools. Marian Educational Outreach has been able to provide funds for reading programs that focus on dyslexia, flexible seating of all types for all ages, technology that allows special education teachers to embrace their students’ learning, and allowing them to be leaders in the classroom, and researched based intervention programs that will help with differentiate learning and review over material being taught in the general education classroom. For those who have supported Marian Educational Outreach with financial giving and giving of your time; Thank You! Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for allowing me to ensure that all students in our Diocese receive what they need. For those who want to be a part of this, I welcome you to give me a call or email me with your desires. I look forward to the watching the mission of Marian Educational Outreach unfold as we move forward in supporting the students with disabilities in the Diocese of Evansville.

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