“Let’s connect as individuals and professionals, allowing us to grow your business’s dreams into reality!”
-Kelly Van Der Gugten

What Do I Value Outside of My Professional Journey?

Family

Family isn't always blood, it is those who love and support you for who you are, unconditionally. First, this includes my husband Tyler. We have been married for 3 years, together for 7, accomplishing individual and partner goals. Our newest goal will be learning how to become first time parents in 2025! Next, my Auntie Sue & husband's family; my mother-in-law Wendy & Grandma Ruth. Finally, my friends always check-in on me and are there for my smallest and largest moments in my life. We grow separately but never apart!
Personal Development

I strive to develop new skills and educate others.
Designing & Creation

I love creating a plan and vision, and implementing how to achieve it, making it as complex or simplistic as needed. I am willing to take on any challenge!
Creating Goals

I love completing my own checklists and that feeling of accomplishing a small short term goal or task or a long term goal or task.
Building Relationships & Supporting Others

I love giving gifts, showing I care, complimenting, and making others happy. I greatly value supportive relationships versus competition. There is so much value in creating life-long connections.
Planning & Organizing

I love planning anything from coordinating my own wedding, to bridal showers, bachelorette weekends, surprise birthdays, and vacations. I also love organizing finances, my home, and finding solutions to any problem!
Communication

I value open and honest communication and learning what communication style is best for those I love and care about! I also value listening and learning from those around me!
Community

I currently reside in Santa Clarita, CA I was born in Mission Hill, and grew up in Saugus, CA! I later moved to Sunland, Tujunga, then Porter Ranch, and Stevenson Ranch, before finding my current residence in Saugus! We have an incredibly close, supportive, and protective community that I am incredibly grateful for!

My Foundation, Journey, Passion, & Clients

Foundation & Experience
My foundation and experience led to 8 years of teaching(2016-2024); 1st and 4th graders across the valley both in person and virtually, constantly adapting, collaborating, and creating diverse and engaging plans and environments to develop with the ever-changing educational system.
My Educational Journey
My educational journey began at California State University Northridge, earning my Bachelors in Liberal Studies in 2014, Multiple Subject Teaching Credential in 2016, and my Masters in Educational Administration in 2023.
My Passion
Through displaying various degrees of competence and invaluable experiences I found my passion and commitment to collaboration and communication, creating plans of action and goals, creating and sharing resources for unique needs and levels of development, and creating engaging environments.
My Clients
Each of my “clients” has a very diverse set of needs and I thrived evaluating and celebrating their growth and achievements as individuals, and as a whole, with evidence and data to support them beyond their current visions and goals.
My Professional Journey
My professional journey began in 2016, gaining hands on experience in person and virtually, quickly learning the value in skills such as organization, design and creation, research and data evaluation, and creating missions and visions.

Professional Journey and Experiences

My

Working at a dual language Hebrew Charter School with a focus on Project Based Learning gaining cultural and problem solving skills.
Working within LAUSD as a Lead Teacher with a focus on online independent study operations, co-facilitating Professional Learning Communities for personal and professional growth. I gained leadership, technological, and traditional skills to to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn. (Universal Design for Learning)
Working as a foundational STEAM(Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) Magnet teacher paving the way for our school and Magnet Program (in-person and virtually), dedicated to preparing students for college, career, and life in the 21st Century.
Working within the Saugus Union School District as a Positive Behavioral Intervention Support Team Member collaborating, planning, and implementing assemblies, resources, and professional development/staff meetings for school wide behavior expectations. I also Implemented SEL (Social Emotional Learning) daily to build a classroom community that help students develop healthy identities, create meaningful relationships, and engage productively with all members.
- Data Entry into online systems such as Google Sheets.
- Data analysis of classroom and school wide assessments.
- Evaluating data and differentiating plans of action for individuals, small groups, classrooms, and schoolwide.
- Knowlege of systems within Google, Zoom, Canva, apps such as CapCut, Instagram, Facebook TikTok, ChatGPT, AI, Pinterest and Etsy.

Diving a bit deeper into my career, I harness a unique set of skills and accomplishments:

Kelly Van Der Gugten

4 questions about

- I became a teacher upon the support of 8 family members in the field and upon years of assisting them in their own classrooms.
- I learned the value in educating and shaping the next leaders and citizens with their academic, social, and emotional needs.
- It is incredibly rewarding to be a part of a child's daily life, impacting their future, growing relationships, and watching them meet their goals, wants, and needs. My students were MY kids and I learned so much from them and their desire to be life-long learners.
- Whether it was relationships with students, families, or the community, I valued open communication for individual students and families, and as a team, the opportunities were incredibly rewarding.
- Each day, month, and year was a reward by empowering students and families and sharing their progress and growth.
- I chose to leave teaching after 8 years due to the mental load not only within the 6 hours of the school day where the tasks cannot be completed due to the individual attention, academic, and social/emotional needs of each student and family, but the expectations beyond school hours.
- This included after-school committees, meetings, and requests beyond our contract and job duties for the grade level, administration, and school-wide. The mental load began to carry into my personal life, affecting my relationships and physical health.
- I knew I needed to make a change for myself and my family. I needed to find a way to disengage my stress and refocus on my values.
- Animals; I have two English Mastiffs, Hazy and Nash. I also have a cat named Rusty and 3 chickens. Before becoming a teacher I went to pre-veterinary school in hopes of working with animals! I absolutely love caring/spoiling all species of animals want a rescue farm one day!
- Horse Back Riding; I have been riding since I was 8 years old! I currently ride at a barn in Santa Clarita and lease my dream horse Corel!
- Working Out; I love challenging my body through Lifting, Fit 45 Classes, and walking my dogs. I have completed 8 LA and Santa Clarita Marathons, as well as a Spartan Trifecta with my husband!
- Decorating/Designing: I absolutely love vintage and antique stores and supporting small businesses, as well as getting hands on making my own DIY house decor!
- River; My husband and I own a trailer in Bullhead, Arizona or Laughlin Arizona, and take frequent trips with out families, dogs, and boats to relax and unplug. This I also where my husband proposed to me!
- My husband; We have been married for 3 years, together for 7, accomplishing individual and partner goals. Our newest goal will be learning how to become first time parents in 2025!
- My Auntie Sue & husband's family; They love and support me exactly as I am, and love me unconditionally.
- My friends; They always check-in on me and are there for my smallest and largest moments in my life.

Contact

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