Patric Iannucci

Tell us why you became a teacher

I became a teacher for the reason that I had an IEP growing up. I didn’t learn how to read or write till 3rd grade, but from the help of my resource teacher I was able to. I kept that with me till I went to college to study to become a special education teacher myself. I want students to find the joy in learning and know that they can achieve anything with support.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

For the last 3 and a half years I worked at a center school for kids with low IQ’s and severe disabilities. I taught specifically students with autism who are nonverbal and have aggressive behaviors. There was one student that transferred into my class as a sixth grader and he didn’t like school/had big behaviors of self injury. However, after a year of growing a relationship, building trust and finding things he enjoyed. His mother told me that he’s happy and loves school. He never missed a day

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would either apply it to two things. One idea would be to help my current school build or get an area to have a sensory room to help our students regulate in a safe environment. The second idea start to push towards my doctorate and observe/study aside of autism that isn’t touch. It’s the combination of OCD and Autism for the more severe population. There isn’t any real research or helpful strategies to work with these students to decrease their OCD or behaviors.