Staff Feature: Alexa Moran

Before Ms. Moran became a teacher, she started out as a Therapeutic Recreation Specialist at Shepherd Spinal Center. There, she taught adaptive recreation techniques to people who suffered from spinal cord and brain injuries.

She later found her passion for teaching through working as a Parapro. “When my twins were born, I was a stay-at-home mom until they reached first grade. While living in East Point, I was part of the founding committee of The Main Street Academy in College Park where I also worked as a Parapro for Kindergarten. I loved teaching young children so much that I decided to get my M.A.Ed in 2014,” she explains. 

Ms. Moran soon found herself at Wesley in 2017. “Wesley appealed to me because it had a

stellar reputation and it was located close to my home. It was important to me to work in the community in which I lived,” she shares. “Additionally, my children attended Wesley for a short period of time and I was very impressed with the rigor of the IB program. Also, I felt that the teaching staff was phenomenal.” 

Ms. Moran has been able to teach a lot of different groups at Wesley. She has taught 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade. She is also the ESOL instructor for the entire school. “I have enjoyed teaching 4th grade EIP because at this age, students have gained more independence and they are better able to make connections between what they are learning and the world around them. I enjoy the EIP position because helping students reach their full potential when they are struggling is very rewarding,” she says. 

When asked about her favorite thing about teaching at Wesley she feels that she is part of a family. “I can’t tell you how many times I have heard and have said that ‘once you are my student, you are always my student,’” she exclaims.

When her students leave her class, she wants them to know that she will always be there for them and will advocate for them. Her goal is to help guide them to be the best version of themselves. 

She shares that one of her favorite memories from a class was watching a student improve their reading skills. “I have a student this year who has really struggled with reading. We have worked together almost every day learning basic sight words and blends. The day that she read every sight word to me without stumbling, and the smile that came across her face when she finished, made us both cry with pride. It again defined for me the reason I love to teach,” she explained. 

Outside of teaching, Ms. Moran enjoys traveling, practicing yoga, and photography. She and her husband like to watch soccer games, cook, and try new restaurants together. Both of her children are in college now and she loves seeing them whenever they have time to visit.