Independence teacher loves to work with teen moms
Amy Guzie offers help about school, babies
Desiree Dan, 19, knows where to turn if she ever needs help.
The Independence High senior became part of the school’s Graduation Reality and Dual Skills program shortly after her son, George, was born in February 2015.
Dan immediately formed a strong bond with GRADS teacher Amy Guzie, who guides pregnant teens and young moms through a curriculum that covers life skills, career development and health information.
“She’s always there,” Dan said. “You can tell she’s really passionate. She doesn’t do this just because it’s a job.”
Guzie is known for going out of her way to make sure her students feel supported — attending their baby showers and weddings, and giving them gift baskets every Thanksgiving.
That dedication recently earned her the new teacher of the year award from the state’s GRADS office, which manages 27 sites serving 574 teen parents.
Guzie, who has been Independence High’s GRADS teacher since 2015, was surprised and thrilled by the honor.
“They read all these great things about me, and I thought, that’s so neat,” she added.
Independence High principal Sue Carley said Guzie deserves all the accolades.
“Amy really knows how to build trust with kids and show them that there are good adults in the world,”
Carley said.
An Albuquerque native, Guzie has worked with GRADS off and on for nine years. She started as the child care director at Independence High, an alternative school designed to help teens get to graduation.
After a few years, she moved on to work as the GRADS case manager at Los Lunas and Valencia high schools before returning to Independence High full-time.
The job immediately felt like a great fit.
“I love working with teenagers and I love working with the babies,” Guzie said. “Putting the two together is a fun combination.”
Guzie is also inspired by seeing her students become good mothers and role models.
GRADS works to build those skills, offering coursework in 10 areas: career development, economic independence, healthy relationships, safe childcare environment, child development, parenting, personal development, decisionmaking, and prenatal and post-natal care.
The program was developed using standards from the National Association of State Administrators of Family and Consumer Sciences and has shown good results across the country.
In New Mexico, 81 percent of GRADS students graduated from high school last year versus 50 percent of teen mothers nationwide.
And only 2 percent of GRADS students had babies born at low birth weight in 2015, well below the 8.9 percent statewide.
Guzie said Rio Rancho Public Schools has been a great champion of the program.
“I feel so supported,” she added. “I feel like our school is a really nice hidden treasure. I absolutely love working here. I love the connections we make. We feel like we are almost a family, in a way.”