Ruskin teacher helps juggle school’s Head Start program and food pantry

RUSKIN, Fla. — Magali Garcia-Rosado has been a teacher for 25 years. She says she loves helping young students learn and grow.

“My kids are everything to me,” Garcia-Rosado said. “They come into the classroom and they’re always talking about how happy they are, they’re talking about giving warm hugs. They are curious learners.”

Garcia-Rosado said she loves the interaction with the little ones and watching them grow every day.

“I love to see the process of learning,” she said.

Garcia-Rosado is the Head Start teacher at Ruskin Elementary. She’s been there for seven years. A parent reached out to nominate Garcia-Rosado to be featured as an A+ Teacher, saying she is always there for her students and their families. 

“It makes me feel very humbled that my families see me as someone who supports not just the children but also them,” she said. “Because I am a firm believer that I am working with the parent. The parent is the first teacher and I come along to support them.”

Garcia-Rosado also helps run the school’s food pantry. Families can get food there every Wednesday. That’s one of her many contributions to the school.

“She focuses on the whole child so not just academics, but social, emotional growth as well,” said Ruskin Elementary Principal Jeanine Saddler. “I have never seen anything like it in a Head Start or Pre-K classroom.”

Garcia-Rosado is certainly making a difference.

“When we see the children learning, it just humbles me and it gives me such great joy to see that everything that we have worked towards, we begin to see it,” said Garcia-Rosado.