Staff Spotlight: Corey Pena teaches our youngest students to be successful readers

by Amy Haggerty

Corey Pena has been teaching elementary-aged children for several years in Stockbridge, beginning at the start of her career in 1998 as a resource teacher in the Special Education Department. Currently, Pena is a Title One academic support lead teacher at both Smith Elementary and Heritage.

When Pena was in third grade, her family settled in the Stockbridge area. She graduated in 1993 from Stockbridge High School and then attended Washtenaw Community College to work on her associate degree. From there, she went on to Eastern Michigan University where she earned a master’s degree in clinical psychology and a secondary English teaching degree.

Before pursuing her teaching career, Pena held a position for the Washtenaw County Clerk. She thinks of Judge William F. Ager, Jr. as “one of my most influential advisors who knew that I wanted to become both a counselor and teacher. He encouraged me to begin taking classes while I worked for him.”

Along with her husband, Greg, they have raised three children, who all graduated from Stockbridge Schools: Yolanda Draffen is a teacher at Paragon Charter in Jackson and is raising two daughters. Mandi Look is a cloud support engineer in Seattle. Their son, Charlie, is a marketing specialist at Dart Container in Mason.

Pena loves spending time in her own backyard. Her family enjoys their pool, riding 4-wheelers, and many other outdoor activities. Beyond Michigan, Pena loves the mountain range in Colorado, and says, “They hold great memories for me.” In the past several years, she makes it a point to travel to Seattle to visit with her daughter and her son-in-law.

Looking back over 25 years, Pena says, “I have helped over 750 high-risk students learn to read.” She adds that her greatest responsibility is “to ensure that all students who need extra and specialized programming are given high-quality instruction to master the curriculum to the best of their ability.”

Music has been a passion for Pena. In addition to teaching, she plays the keyboard and is a singer/songwriter/performer. She and Greg have recorded many songs together. Her dream is to meet Billy Joel and Dolly Parton someday. It’s no surprise that Dolly made the list when Pena explains her desire to meet the singer-songwriter.

“Dolly Parton—for what kind of person she is and the fact that we both have music and literacy in common.”

Corey Pena looks up from working with her students at Smith Elementary. Photo credit: Amy Haggerty

Corey Pena relaxing with two of her children (Mandi and Charlie) and her husband Greg. Picture provided by Corey Pena.