Umoja International Academy

My name is Carmen Martinez, I started as a student teacher here at Umoja, and now I am proud to be in my 2nd year of teaching! I I recently graduated from UC Davis with a Masters degree in Education, and also hold a Bachelor’s degree in English from Sacramento State. 
I am passionate about empowering students to be lifelong learners, and creating culturally sustaining learning experiences. 
Beyond my professional life, I love painting, drawing, traveling, and going on hikes with my partner and dog, Rosie. 

My name is Eduardo Ortiz. I am one of the 3 Spanish teachers here at UIA. I recently graduated from Sac State with a Master’s degree in Education, and also hold a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Arizona State University. I began my career in teaching here at Umoja as a student-teacher, and now I am going into my 3rd year in education. I am excited to continue to work with the students of UIA and help them progress in their language acquisition journey. In my free time I enjoy traveling, playing Pokemon Go and spending time with my wife and two kids.

This is my third year at UIA and my 7th year teaching. I completed my student teaching here at UIA during the 2016-2017 school year. I hold a Bachelor’s Degree in English and a Master’s Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Sacramento State. When I’m not in the classroom, I enjoy reading, crochet, playing disc golf, Nintendo, and spending time with my friends, my husband, 16-year-old son, and our two dogs. During the cooler months, you can find me plodding around my backyard trying to keep plants alive (with mixed results).

I’m Ms. Rowe! This year marks my 4th year as a teacher at Umoja International Academy. I received my Bachelor of Science degree in Human Development from UC Davis. I then went on to complete my teaching credential and master’s degree at Dominican University in San Rafael. 
In my free time, I enjoy reading, creating and listening to music, karaoke, long walks, needlepointing, knitting, playing video games, and of course, spending time with my cat – a 12 year old Siamese named Molly.

I’m Ms.Szeto! This is going to be my 10th year at Kit Carson/Umoja International Academy! I love working with the staff! The school is basically my second home. I graduated from CSUS with a Liberal Studies degree and art was my concentration as undergrad. I also got my teaching credential  from there as well. (Stingers up!)  I am the advisor for Anime and Drama club. I love empowering students to do better for themselves. I always tell them this, “The next generation needs to be better than the last.”