DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE DEPENDENTS SCHOOLS RAMSTEIN HIGH SCHOOL UNIT 3240 BOX 445 APO AE 09004. April 27, 2016 To whom it may concern: 1am writing this reference on behalf of Tarah Kiehne, whom I've had the pleasure working with for two years at Ramstein High School in Germany. | am the teacher for the moderate/severe population here in the special education department, and have had from five to nine students in my class each year here, at the largest DODEA high school in Europe. Imet Ms. Kiehne first as a designated substitute at school and she would cover for my staff or me periodically throughout her first year here. She was impressive in demonstrating her skills and positive demeanor with all teachers here; giving her a reputation that eventually caused most teachers to ask for her by name. As time went by her first year, she became more and more familiar and comfortable working with the students in special education programs with more severe disabilities, and grew to really enjoy the classroom and challenges it offered. The kids, in turn, learned to appreciate all that she had to offer them, forming a very tight bond ina relatively short period of time. By the end of her first year at RHS, she made a request to teach in my classroom permanently as a teacher's assistant, and became more and more confident in her role. Most valuable to me, after realizing that she was sincere in her beliefs in assisting the students to reach for total independence in every part of their lives, was her ability to make sound and reliable judgment concerning daily or hourly decisions. She is wise beyond her years, no question! ‘Tarah has, what seems to be, an endless amount of energy and enthusiasm that is contagious. It may be difficult to maintain an atmosphere of excitement everyday throughout a school year for the students, but this is even more of a challenge when living and working in Germany, where it is continually dark, cold, and rainy. As a classroom teacher, itis extremely important that I create an environment that is fun, supportive, exciting, entertaining, and nurturing. Tarah has a magic that made this process flow naturally, and she could spread that enthusiasm to all of the teachers and students she dealt with as she worked through her school days, In my program, we work with students with extremely severe communication and behavior challenges. This requires a great deal of patience and planning/organization to keep all of them on track all day with only 3 adults in the classroom. Tarah has a wonderful sense of humor, can very clearly multi-task without becoming agitated, and handles the greatest challenges (aggressive behavior or toileting accidents) with grace and sound judgment. Ms, Kiehne is never weary and, even in her “off time’, is working on some kind of project that is related to a school activity for the students.Even more valuable to me, as the teacher, was the fact that she was truly “supportive” in every way. Ms. Kiehne supported me in resolving issues as they came up concerning the students or their parents, and was not afraid to take the initiative in making quick changes or decisions, if | was not available, to resolve problems rather than saying it was not her job. Tarah’s judgment, as I said earlier, has always been sound and rational. She has a pleasing and encouraging tone that makes her enjoyable to be with all day, and she handles redirection and discipline for the students consistently and smoothly, without any tone of anger or personal disappointment. Her strategy: Simple redirection and a reminder to use the mistake to your advantage and learn something. ‘Tarah has also impressed me with the handling of very emotional issues while coaching Cheer here at RHS. I witnessed her demeanor once last year, being reasonable and calm throughout a thirty minute meeting , handling of out-of -control parents and students who were making unreasonable demands, and de-escalating the situation with finesse. That family had actually invited her out to dinner at the end of the season prior to her leaving Germany. She tends to leave a respectful mark on people who get to know her well. Tarah also has my full respect for handling the more personal issues life sometimes hands us. I've never met one so young with such a mature look at life and ambition to be her best every day. I truly miss her on both a personal and professional level, but wish her the best wherever she may teach. She will, without doubt, be one of your very best teachers, for any subject area, | assure you. She is not only hard-working, reliable and extremely responsible, but will offer your school a genuine dose of enthusiasm and professionalism that you will find most valuable. A very important side note to consider: Tarah’s English language skills are very strong as she has always been asked to proof/edit many of the staff’s homework papers as many of us are also working from BA to MA degrees and doing that during lunch periods or after school. This is a huge advantage to any employer, more important however to schools where spelling and grammar are expected to be flawless. Please don’t hesitate to contact me for further information about Tarah’s performance or for further detail on any concerning issues for you. Respectfully, £ Pere Krfoten Kentledy ‘Teacher, Special Education Moderate/Severe Program Ramstein High School Kristen.Kennedy@eu.dodea.edu