April 2015

To Whom It May Concern:

Victoria Budzinski has been actively involved at Zeeland Quest, in Zeeland, Mi, from September of 2014
through April of 2015. Ms. Budzinski started in the fall semester as a teaching assistant for her
Curriculum and Methods course. In January of 2015, she began her 16 week student teaching placement,
which she completed in April of 2015. In both cases, Victoria was working in a multi-age 2nd and 3rd
grade classroom with 24 students, six of whom had a wide range of learning disabilities from ADHD to
developmental delays and cognitive impairments.

Ms. Budzinski was responsible for teaching all elementary core subjects, using a variety of instructional
techniques, during her time at Zeeland Quest. One of the primary modes of instruction was project-based
learning (PBL), which Victoria used to teach social studies and science concepts. Her PBLs incorporated
a significant amount of the science and social studies content as well as 21st Century Skills, in-depth
inquiry, and student voice and choice. Victoria also taught 3rd-grade-level math to 26 students in
second and third grade. Although multi-age teaching requires a greater degree of differentiation to
address the academic and developmental needs of the students, Ms. Budzinski took initiative with
teaching math, in a workshop style, her first week of student teaching. Victoria created lessons and
activities that were connected to the real world, engaging for students, and allowed for ample practice
opportunities.

She continued her superior work with the workshop method of teaching students through

the use of guided reading groups and stations. In addition to core instruction, Victoria actively
participated in the planning and analyzing of data when determining Response to Intervention (RTI)
groups as well as taught the small RTI groups.

Across all content areas, Victoria is a phenomenal teacher who was consistently well-planned, organized,
and always adjusted her lesson to the needs of her students. Ms. Budzinski demonstrated creativity,
innovation, and sought ways to extend the learning of her students through classroom field trips, guestspeakers, and developing a partnership with a science class at the local university. Victorias lessons
were well thought out and presented a variety of modalities to meet each students learning needs. Not
only were Ms. Budzinskis lessons thorough and aligned to the Common Core Standards, but they also
encouraged student engagement and fostered success for them.

Throughout her time at Zeeland Quest, Victoria has also demonstrated a genuine care and concern for the
students with whom she worked. She demonstrated this in many ways, whether it was providing books on
topics the students were interested in or spending her time at recess playing with them; it was evident that
the students felt safe, valued, and loved. Ms. Budzinski created a classroom environment where kindness,
acceptance, and mutual respect were given and received. Victoria actively participated in parent meetings
by making suggestions and providing ideas on how we could best meet the needs of an individual student.
In doing so, she was respected by administration and parents alike. Ms. Budzinski was a superior,
collaborative teaching partner who consistently went above and beyond to build a deep rapport with
parents, students, and her co-workers. Victoria participated in Zeeland Public Schools Professional
Learning Communities and attended curriculum development meetings, district-level professional
development, PBL planning sessions, School Improvement Team meetings, Ottawa County Professional
Development programs,Individualized Education Plans, and Child Studies, as well as staff meetings.

It is without hesitation, and my personal opinion, that Victoria Budzinski will be an outstanding addition
to any school faculty. Ms. Budzinski has exhibited a dedication to the education field and her students
while displaying exemplary teaching abilities and outstanding organizational skills. Victoria has an
exciting and promising future as an educator and she will be a strong asset to your district!

If I may be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Kimberly Villanueva

2-3 Teacher
Zeeland Quest
616-748-3050 (w)
616-886-8947 (c)