South High School

1700 E. Louisiana Ave.

Denver, CO 80210
Tel 720-423-6000
Fax 720-423-6280
www.denversouth.dpsk12.org

February 16, 2020

To Whom It May Concern,

It is my honor to recommend Danielle Speed to your program. For the past year and a half, I’ve
had the pleasure of working with Dani in the math department of South High School. Dani is an
outstanding educator for the community, for her coworkers, and especially for her students. I am
confident that with her skills, experience, and personal qualities, she will be a powerful asset in
her new role as a special education teacher.

As the team lead for the Integrated Math 2 team last school year, Dani worked to facilitate
weekly team meetings to plan the curriculum, share resources, and write common assessments.
While it is not always the easiest task to get a group of teachers to agree, Dani brought her
coworkers together by supporting everyone, using logic and reason, and keeping students at the
forefront of everything. Dani’s determination to do right by her students shows through her
efforts daily. Dani can often be caught strategizing or brainstorming with coworkers on ways to
better serve her students. These strategy sessions often take place during passing periods,
lunch, or after-school. This year, in her new role as the math department interventionist, she has
been steadily creating resources and blasting them out to the entire department to help students
beyond her case-load.

What’s more, Dani’s extraordinary care and compassion always make her a stand-out member
of the team. She shows immense amounts of respect to everyone she interacts with, which
helps her build strong relationships with her students and coworkers. Dani is careful to never
assume in a very caring way, which makes her one of the most respectful people I’ve ever had
the pleasure to work with.

Danielle Speed has my complete recommendation for this program. I have no doubt she will find
success in this program and use her special education licensure to make a positive impact in the
lives around her. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding her
candidacy or past work.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth McMahon
Math Teacher
South High School