1615 Poydras Street, Suite 1400 | New Orleans, LA 70112 | 1-877-343-4773

January 26, 2015

To Whom It May Concern:

My name is Maria Montoya, I am the Director Strategic Partnerships and Community Engagement at the Recovery School District in New Orleans, La. Last year, I had the great pleasure of meeting and working with Beverly Hogan when I enrolled my 4-year-old son at Cortland Head Start in Detroit, MI. While in Detroit, Ms. Hogan encouraged me to serve on the Wayne Metro Policy Council and Michigan Head Start Association Board.

I have had the honor of having two other children graduate from Head Start, and I can state with confidence that Ms. Hogan strongly upholds the program ideals and values in all that she does and brings to the program each and every day. Without a doubt she is an advocate for early learning, and her dedication to students, parents, families, quality schools, programs and her community is unquestionable.

During my time in Michigan, I told everyone I met that Ms. Hogan is a rare breed and I know that first-hand as I have been around the country and seen much of the work that is taking place when it comes to education reform. I work with and support 97 schools here in New Orleans, working with all different levels of authorizers, management companies and school leaders, and I would not endorse or recommend just anyone.

Ms. Hogan is an asset to any program – and more so a rare find.

If I could clone her and bring her down to New Orleans, I would in a heartbeat. Every family deserves the level of care and attention Ms. Hogan gives the families she serves at Wayne Metro. She is invested in not just the children, but every mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, aunt or uncle, who may walk through her door. Unlike so many, she’ll drop whatever she is doing to serve. That’s rare these days in a world where just a little bit of service would go such a long way. Ms. Hogan treats every child as if he/she were her own, and the evidence of that is so very obvious of that when you walk down the halls of any Head Start where she has worked. The children know her by name, parents drop their phones to greet her and delivery men and woman stop to the hold the door for her not only out of respect, but because they honor the lengths to which she’s gone for her community.

Thank you for your consideration of her for your award and/or position.

Sincerely,

Maria C. Montoya

www.enrollNOLA.org