Students are fortunate special ed teacher Amber Robidou traveled full circle and arrived back in her hometown

by Mary Jo David

Although she grew up in Stockbridge, Amber Robidou took the long road—by way of Colorado and Montana—before becoming a teacher here at Heritage School.

Her years in Colorado and Montana were spent teaching special education, but she was initially hired in Stockbridge to teach fifth grade. After four years, she made the switch to special education here as well, and many consider this her calling.

While in Montana, Robidou won an annual, area-wide special education award. It was especially meaningful to her because people she worked with nominated her for the award. Even more recently, when Robidou’s husband, Jacob, also a teacher, returned to Montana for a visit, one of their previous co-workers, who has 28 years’ experience as a teacher, told Jacob that Amber was the best special ed teacher he’d ever worked with.

Encouragement like that is especially welcomed by Robidou because, by nature, she’s not one to pat herself on the back.

“I’m a big second-guesser,” Robidou explained. “So hearing from other people, people I have great respect for, that I’m doing something right, well, that is really encouraging.”

Growing up as Amber Boyd in Stockbridge, she was heavily involved in athletics. She played basketball, ran track (as an adult, she has completed 10 half marathons), and was a cheerleader; she was also on the National Honor Society and Student Council. After Stockbridge High, she attended Michigan State University, where she initially majored in business. But by the end of her sophomore year, her true calling had surfaced and she changed her major to special education.

In her words: “I’m not sure why it didn’t occur to me sooner. Growing up, I babysat and spent a lot of time with my cousin Cody who has Down syndrome. I observed and volunteered at his school in Mason, and I realized I really enjoy working with students with special needs.”

As Robidou learned firsthand, teaching special education varies immensely from state to state and over time. In Montana, she worked in a district that had 20 paraprofessionals to assist the teachers. She herself has had as many as five parapros to work with students one-on-one. But times have changed, and now she has one parapro to help with her caseload of fourth- and fifth-grade special ed students who come to her for reading and math intervention.

“Our special education goal is to get small group and one-on-one time with these students,” Robidou explained. “In a regular classrooms, it’s hard for them to experience success. In my classroom, they can experience that boost of confidence they need from meeting goals. And my biggest goal for them is that they see their growth and progress and know they can accomplish important things.”

Robidou’s students especially enjoy “Classroom Dojo,” where they earn points for things like timeliness, showing responsibility, staying on task, participation, persevering, and being a good teammate. Later, they get to cash in those points. Recently, one of her students saved 100 points and chose to cash them in for a Starbucks pastry. Robidou’s husband picked it up and brought it to the school that day.

Speaking of Jacob, this writer wondered how Robidou convinced her husband, who was born in Montana, and her seventh- and tenth-grade (at that time) stepchildren to pick up and move to Michigan? It might surprise readers to learn that the school system she left in Montana, which was in the Bozeman area, was not nestled amid the mountains and grasslands we often picture when we hear people talk about that state.

“In fact, it wasn’t rural at all,” Robidou said. “It was like a mini Los Angeles, with many people relocating there from California. The cost of living was rising all the time.” So maybe it wasn’t such a hard sell after all!

The family has settled nicely in Stockbridge and it has grown to include two younger children who are now old enough to attend Stockbridge schools—Logan in fourth grade and Mason in second grade.

As a parent herself, Robidou recommends that parents keep encouraging their children, stay actively involved, and most importantly, advocate for their children.

She assures her students’ parents that the Stockbridge School District is a good place for her special education students to grow and learn.

“The kids in this district are so open and for the most part very friendly. I don’t sense that the kids I have in my class are treated differently because they come to my room for special education services. And my students are so fun and funny. I could write a book about the things they say that make my day!”

Robidou also has great things to say about the people she works with—from her boss to her co-workers.

“The staff at Heritage are awesome! The atmosphere here is welcoming and positive, which makes my job so much easier. In some way, I’m an island in special education, so it makes a world of difference that I can collaborate and work with others who respect what I want for my students,” Robidou said.

Yes, her job involves a lot of paperwork, and sometimes she struggles to separate her work life from her home life. But the rewards abound. Take for instance the day one of her students hugged her out of the blue and told her “You’re the best and I’m glad you never gave up on me.”

Now, that’s enough to melt any teacher’s heart!

All photos provided by Amber Robidou.