October 27, 2017

To Whom It May Concern,

It is an honor to write a letter of recommendation for Loretta Campbell for Out-of-State Student Teaching through
the teacher education program at the University of Northern Iowa. Loretta was a student in my 3164 Teaching
Elementary School Social Studies course in July 2017 and I have maintained contact with her since she was in my
course. Throughout my experiences working with Loretta I have been impressed by her high levels of
professionalism, cultural competency, and her positive approach as a teacher. In my course Loretta was a clear
leader. All of the assignments she submitted were very strong and included creative, critical approaches as an
educator. She worked hard to push her colleagues in the class to address issues of fairness and more clearly
articulate their approach to teaching social studies topics and aims. Loretta also always went above and beyond on
assignments, finding connections or examples of children’s literature that supported my growth as a professor and
that of her colleagues. In a social studies unit that she designed as culminating project for the course Loretta
tackled issues related to multicultural education and kindness. The lessons she designed were intellectually rich,
developmentally appropriate, and modeled for students how to talk openly about various facets of diversity in
their classroom and school community. Overall, it was a pleasure working with Loretta and her dedication to early
childhood education was evident in all of her rich contributions to the course.

During my July 2017 course I realized that Loretta worked in the Children’s Collection at the Cedar Falls Public
Library. Since having learned this, my family and I have visited her while at work on a regular basis. I have a six-
year-old son and a three-year-old daughter who now request that we visit Loretta every week. As we arrive at the
library each week Loretta shows them a warm welcome and stops what she is doing to ask them about their lives
and latest reading interests. She goes out of her way to help them find books in the collection, sometimes even
helping them find reference books about a specific topic in other parts of the library. Loretta also helps
recommend special movies that she thinks the kids will like for our weekly movie night. She patiently helps them
sort through many options and provides suggestions and feedback. She is positive, upbeat, and caring. As a
teacher education professor, I know that a student’s high-quality work matters – but that the way they informally
interact with children outside of a school setting speaks volumes. In our library visits, Loretta has consistently
demonstrated her ability to engage with early childhood students in a way that is loving, yet professional.

I highly recommend Loretta Campbell for an Out-of-State/International Student Teaching position through the
teacher education program at the University of Northern Iowa. From my experiences working with Loretta inside
and outside of the classroom, I know that she is an outstanding early childhood education teacher candidate.
Overall, I have full confidence that Loretta will positively represent the UNI teacher education program. If you
have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Sarah E. Montgomery, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Elementary Education
Department of Curriculum & Instruction
University of Northern Iowa
sarah.montgomery@uni.edu