CEA Ambassador Fellowship Program

Elizabeth Arnquist is an elementary special education teacher at the Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind and a proud member of the Pikes Peak Education Association. She has been in the field for 8 years after earning her Bachelor of Science in Elementary and Special Education at Northern Michigan University and Master of Arts in Applied Behavior Analysis from Ball State University. Elizabeth is passionate about supporting educators by sharing trauma-informed teaching practices and elevating educators’ voices. As a lifelong student of public education, she is dedicated to advocating for equitable and inclusive public education. In her free time, Elizabeth enjoys skiing and camping with her husband and dog.

Ny Cahill is a middle school physical eduction para professional in Jefferson County. They also enjoy working as a coach for various sports, Volleyball, basketball, cross country & track. Most recently they have become a Building Representative for The Manning School of Academics and Arts. They are focusing on LGBTQIA+ issues in schools with the hope of creating a better world for our students. In their free time Ny enjoys reading, binging fantasy shows, and all things Dungeons and Dragons. “Building better worlds from my dreams!”

Kari Gray is a social worker and a Social Emotional Learning Specialist at Manning Middle School in Golden Colorado. As a SELS Kari views the school as her client and has the opportunity to be involved in a variety of schoolwide programs. She is a huge proponent of preventative mental health with a focus on equity, diversity and inclusion. Prior to the SELS position Kari has work from birth to death in various aspects of mental health and taught Art, Kindergarten, and 3rd grade in Chicago Public Schools. In her free time Kari enjoys drawing, hiking, gardening, playing with her dog, and playing video games.

Rachael Hager is an English Language Arts teacher at Brighton High School in District 27J. Her current role includes teaching 9th and 11th graders, including two sections of co-taught 9th grade, where she works in partnership with a Special Education teacher, and two sections (of both 9th and 11th grade) of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) English Language Arts, where she works with emergent bilingual students. In addition to teaching at Brighton High, she also serves as the Freshman Class Sponsor, the No Place for Hate Sponsor, and the Assistant Coach for the Speech & Debate Team. Her educational credentials include a BA in English Writing & Linguistics from The University of Colorado and teacher training from Metropolitan State University of Denver. Additionally, she is currently working towards her MA in Educational Equity & Cultural Diversity at The University of Colorado. Her driving passion in education is equity with a special proclivity for bilingual education and the often marginalized student populations affected by ineffectual CLD/bilingual educational policies and legislation.

Dr. Kelly Holmes, Ph.D., NCSP, received her Ph.D. in school psychology from Loyola University Chicago. She is currently working as a Therapeutic Service Provider (TSP) in an alternative high school in Denver Public Schools (DPS). Dr. Holmes’ leadership roles include: (a) being a national trainer for School Crisis Prevention and Intervention: The PREPaRE Model 3rd edition; (b) serving (2022-25 school years) as a Colorado Education Association (CEA) delegate for her local chapter; and (c) actively participating in her local Educators ACCESS Caucus of Denver – designed to support special education teachers and special services providers (SSPs). In addition, Dr. Holmes is passionate about championing local and state policies that support improved mental health services in public education.

Rae Jones (they/them) is a dedicated Biology and Mentor Teacher and Equity Team Specialist at Denver Online in Denver Public Schools. In addition, they serve as the Association Representative for Denver Online for the Denver Classroom Teachers Association (DCTA) and are on the DCTA Board of Directors. Rae holds a certificate from the AMI Orientation to Adolescent Studies, and a Bachelor of Arts in Peace and Justice Studies from Tufts University. Rae is dedicated to social justice and sustainability and recently has focused on creating structures and systems at the school level to better support trans/nonbinary students and staff and hopes to continue and expand on this work through the CEA Ambassador Fellowship. Rae is passionate about being outside, local botany, exploring science in our everyday lives, ending transphobia in education, taking anti-racist actions, and empowering young people to be the amazing and unique individuals they are in the world.

Stephanie is a social studies teacher in her fourth year at Palmer Ridge High School in Monument and her 16th year teaching. She has over a decade of experience in teaching online for Idaho Digital Learning Academy, making her an advocate for specific state requirements such as plagiarism software and in-person exams that online schools must meet to ensure academic integrity. Stephanie received her master’s in curriculum and development and is currently revising the AP Human Geography courses she is teaching. Stephanie serves as her association’s secretary, along with being an assistant coach to track and cross-country, and leading a community program called RADD – Real Alternatives to Drugs and Drinking for students in grades 9-12. Stephanie is thrilled to be a part of this internship program to learn how to advocate for properly funded public schools.

Katie Piehl is a STEM teacher at Samuels Elementary School in Denver, CO. Prior to this position, she taught special education for 16 years, mostly in Arizona. She has a strong interest in making connections with lawmakers, as well as participating in the process of getting pro-public education candidates elected across the state. Her other interests include trail running, living a sustainable lifestyle, and traveling.

Darlene Rivera is a social studies teacher in Denver Public Schools where she has taught in the classroom since 2007. Darlene has a passion for helping high school students explore their communities and the world through a variety of social studies content classes. Currently she teaches Geography courses at Denver Center for International Studies. Darlene holds a degree in Computer Science and Behavioral Sciences and teaching is a career she entered into later in life. She is an active member in the Denver Classroom Teachers Association and has served as an Association Representative in her building since 2014. Darlene believes a strong teachers Union is vital to supporting teachers’ voice and agency as they do the daily work of putting students first. She is excited to be a Fellow this year and is interested in pushing for increased funding in Colorado schools.

Hannah Squire hails from the southwest corner of Colorado, where she acts as the legislative liaison for Durango Education Association. As a fourth grade teacher with 17 years of experience, she takes pride in supporting both her school and district through various leadership positions. Instilling a school culture based on intrinsic motivation and inclusivity has long been a driving motivation for her participation in local decision making. Over the past decade, her leadership team has been forced to make a series of difficult budget decisions, which over the years, have encouraged her to become more involved in impacting school finance reform. It is her strong opinion that schools should not have to decide between music or art, determine how to operate without a school library, struggle to find funding for a school counselor or to meet students’ needs without interventionists or after school programs. School funding must improve – it’s for the kids!

Jill Connell is a music educator in Fort Collins. She has been teaching for 25 years. Jill has her Bachelors Degree in Music Education, and her Masters in Curriculum and Development with emphasis is Technology. Through her years in education, she has served as an AR in her local as well as Secretary on the Executive Board. She has been a mentor for the CEA Fellowship for four years, and enjoys working with educators around the state.

Dr. Angelica Givler is a 5th-grade literacy teacher at McAuliffe in District 11 in Colorado Springs. This is her 14th year in education and has taught everything from 1st to 6th grade. Dr. Givler has a Bachelor’s of Art in Elementary Education, a Master’s of Education in Literacy, and a PhD in Education with a specialization in Reading, Literacy, Assessment, and Evaluation. Dr. Givler has been a union member in all of the states that she taught. Last year she was an ambassador fellow and through that fellowship found her voice to advocate for education. She is looking forward to being a mentor this year and helping others find their voice.