Ashley Quesenberry began her tenure with the Stanly County Schools in August of 2011 when the first of her four children entered school. Ashley was a devoted parent-volunteer and soon transitioned to daily and long-term substitute teaching. From subbing, Ashley was asked to take a tutoring position at Millingport Elementary. Her tutoring efforts were so successful that Ashley’s principal asked her to attend HillRAP training in August of 2020. From that moment on, Ashley has been an ardent implementer of HillRAP, and she now teaches 10 HillRAP groups each day!
Ashley is a HillRAP advocate for many reasons. She really likes the confidence it gives her students; ”You can begin seeing some results soon after they start the program. They become more involved in class, they enjoy coming to school, and they start reading for fun! I have many children tell me daily how much HillRAP is helping them with their i-Ready lessons and overall schoolwork!”
Megan DePasquale, principal at Millingport Elementary, commented, “Ashley is dedicated to her work with HillRAP and has been an asset to our reading interventions at Millingport Elementary. Her excitement and passion about HillRAP can be seen in the progress that students make and the confidence that they gain in reading. Ashley’s love for learning gets our students excited about learning!“
Millingport Instructional Coach, Bobbie Throneburg, added, “’Teachers who love teaching… teach children to love learning.’ This is Ashley Quesenberry – every moment of her day. She is so excited to work and to grow her students which carries over to the students loving learning everything she can give them. Her passion for HillRAP teaching flows through our students.”
When asked about her favorite student success story, Ashley recalled her work with an ELL student: “Once she learned her letter names and sounds, she could not be stopped. She has an older sister in high school who wrote me a thank you note for teaching her sister.” This motivated student began the school year two years below grade level and was on grade level when the school year ended!
Summing up her feelings about HillRAP, Ashley stated, “It’s such a blessing to see the impact this year on students I worked with last year, so absolutely, I’m a true believer and LOVE every minute of what I do!”