January 28, 2015
To Whom It May Concern:
It is an honor to recommend Mary Harris for recognition of her work in the arts. Mary is an
administrator with a passion for learning and a desire to provide opportunities for both students
and teachers to grow individually and as a school family. When the opportunity to partner with
the George Rodrigue Foundation and work to become a LA A+ School presented itself, Mary
jumped at the chance to offer it to our faculty. Her enthusiasm for the arts and integrating it into
our curriculum was contagious, and as a faculty we agreed that the benefits for our students were
well worth the commitment required to learn and train.
On a personal level, I began the training process with the purpose of integrating the arts into my
curriculum to expand and enhance learning. What started as a way to integrate content with the
arts for my students quickly became transformative to me as a teacher. Through Mary’s vision, I
have been rejuvenated in my approach to teaching and assessment and truly believe that arts
integration has helped me meet the individual needs of my students in ways that are very unique
to each of them and their learning styles. Mary’s commitment to arts integration has manifested
itself in many ways, including supplying the resources needed to provide opportunities in the arts
for all students. Mary has worked tirelessly to find ways to provide teachers with needed
materials. Her efforts have included grant writing to secure art supplies and encouraging us to
utilize, to the best of our ability, the materials that we already possess. Additionally, she has
provided planning time for us to collaborate with the art teachers at our school and each other by
grade and content level.
With a grateful heart, I can say without question that Mary Harris is deserving of any honor she
may receive related to her work with the arts. Her commitment and diligent efforts have made a
difference in our school and in my individual teaching. Mary is supportive and a willing learner
herself, and I am pleased to have an opportunity to write on her behalf. If I can be of any further
help, please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
Sharon Parker
Fifth Grade Teacher
South Highlands Elementary Magnet School
soparker@caddoschools.org