In 2013, David Duane made a career switch.
After working in telecommunications and customer service, Duane caught wind of an opening at Cottonwood Point Elementary for a special education paraprofessional and decided to go for it.
Ten years later, Duane has earned the district’s recognition for his “distinguished service” in his role.
Duane wears many hats as a para
Duane — known at Cottonwood Point as “Mr. David” — said every day begins and ends with student support for what he calls his “little buddies” at Cottonwood Point.
This means anything from greeting students as they get off the morning bus to providing support during classes. Duane typically works with students from at least three different grade levels throughout the day.
Over the past decade, Duane has become familiar among students for another reason. He’s also become the school’s Friday “sportscaster,” giving updates over the intercom about local teams like the Kansas City Royals and Sporting KC.
“There’s never a dull moment,” Duane said. “Really, what I do is a lot of fun — I wouldn’t do it otherwise.”
The district recognized Duane at this month’s meeting
Earlier this month, district officials presented Duane with a distinguished service award — a surprise that Duane said “came out of the wild blue.”
At the Sept. 11 Blue Valley Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Tonya Merrigan thanked Duane for being a crucial part of his students’ day-to-day lives.
“Every time you’re (at Cottonwood Point), you see Mr. David with kiddos who need one-on-one attention probably more than anyone, and they’re having really good days because of you,” she told him. “You are the epitome of an amazing individual who’s supporting our students, and we just could not be prouder.”
Duane said his job is made easier by his fellow staff at what he called “Overland Park’s favorite school.”
“You’re only as good of a para as the people you work around,” he said. “They work hard every single day. When you see that, you are motivated to do it as well to help them out.”
Staff say shortages give Blue Valley a deeper appreciation for paras
Faced with an ongoing shortage of special education teachers and paras, Blue Valley recently launched a para-to-teacher tuition program helping paras get licensed to teach.
In the short term, Kate Burrow, principal at Cottonwood Point Elementary, has managed to fill vacancies by offering more flexible, part-time para positions. Faced with the day-to-day realities of these staffing shortages, she said support from paras like Duane helps their students go the extra mile.
“Kids know when they have additional adults who are really in their corner,” Burrow said. “And I think that goes a long way for kids to know, ‘I’ve got a lot of people at school who care about me.’”
District-wide shortages, Burrow said, have also given Blue Valley staff a “new awareness” of not taking its paras for granted.
“Truly, they are sometimes the cog or the grease on the wheel that just kind of keeps things running smoothly,” she said. “I couldn’t name half those little things that (Duane) does in a day, but I know that they’re there, because the kids he interacts with are having great days learning. And that doesn’t happen by accident.”
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