Heather Moentmann
Charlottesville & The Shenandoah Valley, VA
Heather began her career in American Sign language after graduating from high school. Not having any previous knowledge of ASL, Heather began taking classes at her community college in 1995, during which she spend many hours at The Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind (VSDB), a residential Deaf school, located in Staunton, Virginia practicing sign language with the students. As Heather became more familiar with the language and culture of the Deaf, she was asked by the principal of VSDB to become a substitute teacher. She worked at the school as a substitute teacher for more than a year during her community college career and then went on to be a Job Coach for a student at the school for another year.
Heather graduated from community college in 2000 with a General Studies Associates and moved to Richmond to begin working as a Behavioral Counselor at the Virginia Treatment Center for Children (VTCC) on the newly opened Deaf unit. There, Heather worked one on one with Deaf children in a psychiatric setting. She continued working at VTCC until the Deaf unit closed in 2003.
Heather then went to work at the Virginia Home for Boys and Girls (VHBG) in Richmond Virginia as an Alternate Teaching Parent under the guidelines of the Teaching Family Model. Heather began working in the first girls house on the VHBG campus and went on to become a two time Certified Teaching Parent and was awarded the Distinguished Practitioner of the Year in 2006 by the Nationally Accredited Teaching Family Association.
Heather is currently working toward her M.Ed. degree and is enjoying raising her twelve month old son who is learning sign language and has a vocabulary of about 30 words.
Areas of coverage are: Charlottesville, Waynesboro, Staunton and Harrisonburg...all area in between as well!
For more info e-mail: heatherm@mysmarthands.com or download our class inquiry form to be placed on a mailing list for upcoming classes. Remember to email the form back to Heather completed.
